Floods are the main natural disaster in Poland, and the risk of both fluvial and pluvial floods is serious in the country. Pluvial floods are on the rise in the changing climate, particularly in increasingly sealed urbanized areas. In this paper, we examine the changes in flood risk in Poland, discussing the mechanisms, observations, projections and variability. Next, we discuss flood risk management in the country, including specific issues related to urban and rural areas and the synergies between flood and drought risk reduction measures. We identify and assess the weaknesses of the existing flood risk management plans in Poland for the first planning period 2016–2021 and for the second planning period 2022–2027. We find the level of implementation of plans in the former period to be very low. Many planned measures do not have much to do with flood risk reduction but are often linked to other objectives, such as inland navigation. The plans contain numerous small measures, which come across as inapt and economically ineffective solutions. We specify policy-relevant recommendations for necessary and urgent actions, which, if undertaken, could considerably reduce flood risk. We also sketch the way ahead for flood risk management in Poland within the timeframe of the implementation of plans for 2022–2027 and the next regular update of plans for 2028–2033.

Global challenges such as urbanization, aging societies, climate change, and environmental and water crises are becoming increasingly important in terms of the impact they might have on the quality of life (QoL) in cities. Appraisal instruments for QoL assessment, such as rankings and guides, should therefore include these aspects. The aim of this research was to verify the significance of water and climate-related aspects in assessment tools. A comparative analysis of 24 selected QoL assessment tools shows to what extent these aspects are included in the domains, criteria, and indicators proposed in the instruments. The method of verification is a comparison of the position of winning cities in QoL rankings and city resilience rankings. The results show that water and climate-related aspects are still underestimated in the QoL rankings and guides, and only a few cities with the highest quality of life ranked highly in sustainability and climate resiliency ratings. Our results suggest that the tools for the evaluation and comparison of cities need remodeling, taking into account the most important global risks and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in order to create aging-friendly and climate-neutral cities.

In the times of unification of cultural patterns the art in public areas takes on a very responsible role – creating cognitive map and emphasizing identity of the place. Valuable architectural and sculpture monuments take deserved top position in creating unique townscape. But not only spectacular buildings create the image of the city, sometimes inconspicuous sculptures become city symbols. The subject of research conveyed by the author in Poznan was the quality of public areas and possibilities of making them more attractive by introducing monuments and water elements. Autor define the typology of public art objects (considering their function, form and scale) and methodology of lacalization from the city-scale (according to the viewing popularity aspects and rank of the place) to the csale of indyvidual urban interior. The spatial and social role of sculpture in urban area was analized on examples of public places in Poznan. Vizualinio meno lokalizacijos viešosiose erdvėse metodologija poznanės pavyzdžiu Santrauka Vienodėjant kultūriniams kontekstams viešųjų erdvių menas įgyja ypatingą ir labai svarbią reikšmę kaip atpažinimo elementais atskleidžiantis ir pabrėžiantis vietos identitetą. Vertingi architektūriniai ir skulptūriniai elementai tampa svarbiausiais unikalių miestovaizdžių formantais. Tačiau ne tik įspūdingi statiniai kuria miesto vaizdą. Kartais niekuo neišsiskiriančios, vos pastebimos skulptūros tampa miesto simboliais. Tyrimo, atlikto Poznanės mokslininkės, tema yra viešųjų erdvių kokybė ir galimybė padidinti jų patrauklumą meno kūriniais ir vandens elementais. Autorė apibrėžė viešojo meno objektų tipologiją, įvertindama jų paskirtį, formą ir mastelį, ir lokalizacijos metodiką nuo viso miesto masto iki mažiausiojo mastelio nominalių erdvių, įvertindama apžvalgos populiarumą ir vietos kategoriją. Poznanės pavyzdžiu išanalizuotas tiek erdvinis, tiek visuomeninis miesto skulptūrų vaidmuo. Reikšminiai žodžiai: monumentai, skulptūros, miesto įvaizdžio kūrimas, identitetas, Poznanė First published online: 21 May 2013 Keyword : monuments, sculpture, city image creation, identity, Poznań

Celem badań autorek była analiza struktury funkcjonalno-przestrzennej i stanu zagospodarowania terenów nadwarciańskich w miastach Wielkopolski pod kątem ich przydatności do rekreacji. Szczególną uwagę zwrócono na badanie dostępności rzeki i lokalizacji infrastruktury rekreacyjnej w dolinie Warty. Spośród 11 badanych miast Wielkopolski tylko w czterech: Koninie, Śremie, Poznaniu i Sierakowie, powstały odcinki bulwarów nadrzecznych. W pasie nadwodnym analizowanych miast znajduje się niewiele obiektów o funkcji rekreacyjnej związanej z wykorzystaniem sąsiedztwa rzeki. Atutem zagospodarowania turystycznego doliny Warty jest natomiast aktywizacja szlaku wodnego Wielkiej Pętli Wielkopolski, dzięki rosnącej liczbie przystani i marin, które znajdują się we wszystkich badanych miastach.

Riverside areas have substantial recreational and tourist assets, but their potential in the settlements of Wielkopolska is underused due to difficult access to the river and the poor development of the embankments. The aim of the research is to analyse the functional-spatial structure and the development of River Warta areas in the settlements of Wielkopolska with respect to their usefulness in recreation. Particular attention is paid to accessibility and the location of recreational infrastructure in the Warta Valley. Out of the eleven Wielkopolska settlements which were included, only in four – Konin, Śrem, Poznań and Sieraków – had sections of embankment boulevards been built. In the riverside areas there are few recreational facilities used in connection with the close proximity of the river. However, a great tourist asset of the Warta Valley is the Great Waterway Loop of Wielkopolska, which operates successfully due to the growing number of harbours and marinas in all the settlements included in the study.

This study examines Great Cultural Projects (GCPs) as an element of the developmental process of cities. For this study, GCPs are regarded as a global phenomenon rather than cases that must be analyzed independently. The study focused on four types of GCPs: world and international exhibitions, horticultural exhibitions, Olympic Games, and the European Capitals of Culture. The research sample comprised 183 GCPs globally, organized between the middle of the 19th century to the beginning of the 21st century. The study analyzed the influence of different GCPs on city structure and urban heritage and focused on the distinctive development of each GCP type. The study’s novelty lies in recognition of the four main types of GCPs’ potential for multidimensional urban development and their diversified impact on the transformation of modern cities, along with the identification of potential threats, benefits, and development opportunities related to different GCP types.