Motives: Decarbonizing energy systems in line with EU and national targets places a premium on diverse renewable resources. In Poland, achieving goals such as a 32% renewable energy share by 2030 requires not only large-scale wind and solar projects but also decentralized solutions. Small hydropower plants. These attributes motivate an examination of SHPs’ role in the regional (Kujawsko-Pomorskie) green transition and how to better leverage their potential.Aim: The aim of this study is to assess the contribution of small hydropower plants to the energy transition in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship (north-central Poland). Using qualitative methods – including semi-structured interviews with small hydropower plant managers and analysis of regional energy data – we identify the number, capacity, and distribution of small hydropower plants, characterize the key barriers faced by small hydropower plant managers (administrative, environmental, and economic), and catalog effective management practices.Results: Small hydropower capacity in the region totals 23.24 MW. The study shows that SHP development is constrained by administrative and environmental barriers. Respondents emphasize the need for simplified procedures, institutional support, and good practices such as remote monitoring, automation, and ecological measures.
Motives: The progressive aging of society poses growing challenges for urban housing policy, particularly in post-industrial cities such as Wałbrzych and Jelenia Góra in southwestern Poland. Many older residents live in municipal housing that is technically degraded and poorly adapted to their mobility needs. Aim: This study aims to evaluate the technical condition and housing standards of municipal residential buildings in central districts of Wałbrzych and Jelenia Góra, with particular attention to the needs of older residents. It also investigates local government initiatives designed to improve mobility and eliminate architectural barriers in public housing. Results: The findings confirm that municipal housing units are characterized by significant deterioration and a lack of basic adaptations for people with reduced mobility. Public opinion surveys reveal a strong demand for architectural improvements and better access to mobility aids. The study underscores the broader relevance of these challenges in the context of aging societies and the need to modernize public housing infrastructure accordingly.
Motives: The Holy Family Trail in Egypt consists of twenty-five sacred sites across eight governorates, yet it operates more as a series of disconnected religious stops than as a coherent cultural heritage trail. Despite Papal endorsement and stretching across different bioclimatic zones ranging from Delta wetlands to Saharan caves, the Holy Family trail continues to receive limited scholarly attention and fragmented governmental support that is often confined to small-scale infrastructure improvements. Stakeholders promote differing development visions without any mechanism to align brand identity with reputation management. This disconnect has expanded the gap between policy ambitions and ground-level implementation. Recognising tourism trails as dynamic urban heritage infrastructures that include sequential narratives, not merely connected attractions, this study addresses the need to transform fragmented assets into a competitive cultural tourism ecosystem. Aim: The study develops a strategic destination management framework through a dual-matrix analytical method, including the Corporate Brand Identity Matrix (CBIM) and the Corporate Brand Identity and Reputation Matrix (CBIRM). A five-round Delphi process, conducted between December 2023 and February 2024, engaged twenty-three experts representing different stakeholder groups (e.g., cultural experts, tourism industry professionals, local community, and government officials) through iterative rounds were designed to build strategic coherence. The core aim of this study is to bridge the persistent execution gap by formalising a stakeholder-led brand identity while integrating reputation-governance mechanisms capable of translating the Holy Family trail heritage potential into sustainable tourism development. Results: Participants reached a strong consensus despite differing perspectives. They identified the enhancement of Unique Selling Propositions as the most effective mechanism for improving recognition of the trail. Three competitive strengths were highlighted as central: its formal designation as a Christian pilgrimage route, the bioclimatic landscapes diversity, and its grounding in local community life. The resulting matrix-based framework provides policymakers with practical guidance for repositioning the trail within international tourism networks and offers a transferable methodology for managing heritage trails in other emerging economies.
Motives: The article addresses the need for sustainable tourism development in rural areas with high natural value. With increasing interest in health and wellness tourism, nature-based therapies such as forest therapy, apitherapy, phytotherapy, hippotherapy, and terrain therapy offer opportunities to enhance both the attractiveness of rural destinations and the well-being of tourists. There is a growing necessity to integrate the therapeutic uses of nature with tourism infrastructure while preserving environmental integrity. Aim: To develop a spatial concept for local tourism based on the principles of sustainable development and therapeutic interaction with nature, using the village of Wola Komborska as a case study. The research aims to demonstrate how nature therapy can be integrated into rural tourism to support both human well-being and the long-term attractiveness of natural areas. Results: The study proposes a spatial tourism development concept based on GIS analysis and field assessment to the natural conditions of Wola Komborska, including proposed infrastructure such as walking paths, viewpoints, and small-scale services. It emphasizes the therapeutic potential of the local landscape, microclimate, vegetation, and animals, proposing their sustainable use in health-promoting tourism forms such as agritourism and qualified tourism. The findings underline the importance of preserving natural resources to ensure the longevity and sustainability of rural tourism.
Historical cultural environments are a repository of values and symbols that pass down across generations through spatial experiences. Despite their intellectual and cultural potential, their role in fostering belonging and identity has declined; they are often viewed as silent landmarks, isolated from lived experiences. This highlights the need for an integrated model that makes spatial experience a stimulating process for reinvigorating the meaning inherent in historical contexts and reconnecting the new generation with their cultural roots. This research aims to explore how cultural meaning in historical contexts can be reactivated through spatial experience. To achieve this, the study proposes a triadic model – physical encounter (PE), emotional connection (EC), and imaginative projection (IP) – as a framework. The study adopted a qualitative approach that explores a learning experience consisting of two interactive phases, one within a historical and cultural context, preceded by a formal educational environment, to track the transformations of the interpretive patterns. Students from the Department of Architecture are involved in this process, producing visual storytelling outputs analyzed by ‘MAXQDA Analytics Pro’. The results indicate that spatial experience enhanced spatial awareness and deepened their emotional response by transforming sensory impressions into symbolic meanings. Comparative pre-post analysis showed that after the on-site immersion, more spatial awareness (SA), atmospheric response (AR), symbolic meaning (SM), and transformative visualization (TV) became intensified, indicating more intense experience. Emotional Connection was a mediating dimension between embodied perception and imaginative reinterpretation, and transition of learning was realized through a multidimensional and not a linear process. Imagination contributed as a dynamic dimension, shifting towards context-rooted visualization. The research provides an interpretive framework that demonstrates how spatial experience can be transformed into a means of reinvigorating cultural meaning and enhancing awareness of identity. The triadic model represents an effective tool in education and training.
