The Post as a Factor in Social, Economic, and Spatial Development: A Functional Perspective This monograph explores the institution of the postal service as a systemic phenomenon whose significance extends far beyond its traditional technical and service-oriented communication functions. The author presents the postal system as a component of the socio-spatial infrastructure that, over the centuries, has played a key role in territorial integration, public space management, and the organization of state structures. Particular emphasis is placed on the analysis of the postal service as a tool enabling connectivity between administrative centers and peripheral regions, while also stimulating the development of settlement patterns and improving access to public services. The work is structured into three main chapters. The first examines contemporary postal services and market dynamics, with special attention given to tensions between public interest and market mechanisms. The second chapter traces the historical development of postal institutions as instruments of transport, communication, and governance – both at the national and local levels. The third chapter focuses on the transformation of the postal and courier sectors in the context of digitalization, automation, and the implementation of new technologies, such as electronic communication and last-mile delivery systems using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). The study employs the desk research method, drawing on a wide array of academic, industry, and regulatory sources. An interdisciplinary research perspective allows for the identification of the complex role of the postal service as an institution that binds social, economic, and spatial structures. The cultural dimension of postal activity is also briefly indicated – particularly in the context of the circulation of ideas and the maintenance of social ties.

Purpose:The aim of the article is to recognize and comprehend the role of settlement issues as a factor influencing the shaping of the region and regional policy, using the specific example of West Pomerania.Design/Methodology/Approach: The primary research tools utilized in the article were the method of critical analysis of the literature and the observational method employing arguments in favor of generalized statements.Additionally, methods of induction and deduction, as well as generalizations and synthesis, were applied.Findings: The conducted considerations allowed for the identification of specific challenges related to resettlement and settlement issues, such as depopulation in certain areas or the necessity to adapt infrastructure to the increasing number of residents in others.Practical Implications: The considerations conducted can serve as intriguing cognitive material for both decision-makers and policymakers involved in actions aimed at better managing settlement issues, as well as for scientists focusing on demographic and historical matters from a regional perspective.

Purpose:The aim of the article is to recognize the determinants regarding the solutions applied in the organization of access infrastructure (service point infrastructure) by dominant postal operators providing universal services in Sweden and Poland.The identification of the influence of these determinants makes it possible to attempt to establish whether and to what extent they imply the current economic condition and market position of these entities.Design/Methodology/Approach: The fundamental research tool employed in the article is a rational approach to postal policy issues, utilizing factor analysis methodology, including a systemic perspective.Additionally, the method of critical analysis of the subject literature and the observational method with the utilization of arguments supporting generalized propositions were applied.Findings: The conducted deliberations have enabled the identification of key determinants influencing the organization of access infrastructure by dominant postal operators providing universal services in Poland and Sweden.Concerning the operations of the Swedish operator, PostNord Sverige AB, the pivotal significance of economic conditions in the aforementioned matter was identified.In the case of the Polish operator, Poczta Polska S.A., political and social aspects emerged as the most significant determinants.Practical Implications: The conducted deliberations can serve as significant material for political and economic decision-makers, especially in Poland, highlighting issues and potential solutions concerning the shaping of access infrastructure for designated postal operators.

Large rivers have played and continue to play a highly significant role in the development of societies and countries. The specific nature of the Oder River in the past was determined by the variability of state affiliations and the functions assigned to it. In the competition for dominion over the entire course of the river or over selected sections of it, Czech, Polish, German and Scandinavian influences clashed at different times. Today, a new definition of the role played by the Oder in the context of an increasingly integrated Europe and the evolution of the relevance of national borders is urgently needed. Previ- ous research in this area is seriously inadequate. Studies written in German, as well as in Polish academic circles, should be considered factually incomplete and methodologically outdated. The authors propose a new program of research on the history, present day and prospects for the development of the Oder and the Oder River region. Their starting point should be detailed archival searches conducted in Poland and Germany, as well as an analysis of contemporary concepts of river use for the nations and communities along the Oder River. The article contains the main tenets of such research and its concept

Ensuring energy security is a complex process influenced by many factors. Decisions taken in this area are mostly of a strategic and political nature and cause serious consequences for the entire economy and society. Countries that want to take advantage of the achievements of civilisation, in the absence of their own adequately efficient energy fuel resources, are forced to import them. On the example of Poland, the following have been identified: the causes and level of dependence of the economy on natural gas, threats to the availability of this raw material and formal restrictions on its use as well as its substitutes and energy alternatives. The approach applied in the article is the rational approach to the energy policy issues, and factor analysis including system analysis were used. The authors verified whether the diversified supply of natural gas by sea and the use of biogas can ensure strategic security of supply with this raw material to Poland. The conclusions resulting from the considerations indicate that having the infrastructure necessary for the diversification of gas supplies is no longer sufficient to ensure Poland’s gas security. In 2022, the objective deviation of natural gas on the international market also became a critical factor in this regard.

The use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the delivery of courier and postal items has the potential to provide benefits in breaking down terrain barriers and reducing congestion in urban areas. In addition, the trend to move away from polluting fossil fuels prompts delivery companies to invest in low- and zero-emission means of transport. Electric UAVs reduce environmental contamination in the delivery area and can also be directly powered by renewable energy sources. The aim of this study is to identify the premises and conditions of UAV implementation on the example of companies delivering courier and postal items in Poland. The basic research methods used for the preparation of this study are critical analysis of the literature on the subject, synthesis, and generalisation, which led to the authors’ own research conducted through partially categorised oral interviews. The conducted considerations confirm the existence of premises and the ability of UAVs for the effective delivery of items. In Poland, the most important limitation in the implementation and dissemination of this delivery method is the high level of social scepticism, reaching 43%. If actions are not taken to neutralise this attitude of society, this factor may effectively prevent the use of UAVs for delivery services.

In countries with industrialized agriculture, the contribution of fossil energy equals or exceeds the energy provided to society in food. Poland is one of the countries which, in the absence of its own sufficient oil and gas resources, is forced to import these fossil fuels in order to benefit from modern solutions in the field of food production and distribution. This situation poses a serious threat to food security if there is a prolonged shortage of energy from such sources. Using the example of Poland, the following were identified: the causes and level of agricultural dependence on fossil fuels, energy threats to agriculture and energy source alternative to fossil fuels. The results of these considerations indicate that Poland is not a country that has irretrievably lost its ability to restore its food self-sufficiency in the event of loss of access to external sources of fossil fuels.

Purpose: The purpose of the considerations in the article is an attempt to capture the place of economic initiatives taken by a social organisation in a centrally planned economy in the situation of a malfunctioning real economic account. Design/Methodology/Approach: The method of critical analysis of the literature on the subject and the observational method using arguments for generalised statements drawn from own experience. Archival materials collected mainly in Polish state archives are the basis for the presented theses. The arguments were based on the example of an analysis of the functioning of Construction and Assembly Plant Ter-Zet (Polish abbreviation: ZBM Ter-Zet) as an entity specialising in the structures of Society for the Development of Western Territories (Polish abbreviation: TRZZ) operating in Poland. A kind of borderland between state and private economy was in this case a field for both economic, social and political analyses. Conclusions: The example presented here confirms that centralisation of economic management suppresses the freedom of economic activity. It is reasonable to assume that this phenomenon intensifies as authoritarian tendencies in the actions of policy makers are strengthened. Practical implications: Practical implications for economic policy makers and researchers recognising the relationship between the economic model and the social system. Originality/value: The issues presented are very rarely addressed in research. Existing studies have been very general and not very detailed.

Critical infrastructure consists of systems, devices, facilities and services essential for the security of the state and its citizens. The widespread use of information technology makes the state more effec-tive and the economy more efficient. However, the cyber infrastructure connected in this way is more vulnerable to various threats. The objectives of the considerations presented in this article are: to analyze threats for systems of information and operational technologies used in critical infrastruc-ture, and then attempt to characterize and evaluate activities aimed at counteracting these types of threats in Poland.

One of the basic conditions for the functioning of the 21st century society is the use and development of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). Modern communication mostly takes place in the virtual sphere, so a modern state should adapt its potential to this trend and provide citizens with efficient digital service. The e-goverment services seem to be a particularly important developmental direction in this area. These services are used by the state administration to conduct communication and exchange documents with citizens. A prerequisite for citizens to be able to use these services seamlessly is to ensure effective e-communication by the state. The main purpose of this article is to try to identify the factors that determine the usability and safety of e-communication. The considerations underlined the problems of IT security in case of the substitution of paper documents with electronic documents. Although modern technologies can guarantee a high level of security for all forms of e-communication, the use of them is not free of threats. Moreover, with the development and expansion of the e-services offer, new opportunities for fraud and criminal activity by means of teleinformation appear.

The aim of the article is an identification of the financial preference of citizens in Poland in the context of the acting digitization of the monetary turnover. Decreasing the cash in circulation is an important goal of macroeconomic policy because it makes cash transfers more expensive. Lack of access to finance is often the critical mechanism for slower growth in the economy. Cash in circulation generates huge costs and supports the development of the shadow economy. The poor access to banking service can also to prevent part of society from ertjoying a basic standard of civilization. The main source of data used for the analysis was selected re­search information conducted by the TNS Pentor, the National Bank of Poland and the Master­Card, in 2007-2016.

Technological progress and constant development of IT solutions have significantly influenced contemporary trading methods, especially trading on stock market. Most of financial instruments are dematerialized and the majority of transnational processes are based on sophisticated computer softwares. As a consequence, trading on capital market has become more intense on one side but on the other side, it gradually eliminates the direct participation of human beings in those processes. Technical specifications of internet connections, computer's performance and types of softwares are factors that mainly determine the procedure of investment and its outcome. Although, the potential beneficiaries of these changes seem to be almost only participants trading on the stock markets, the skeptics raise alarming and often legitimate questions that far-reaching elimination of human factor in this market may lead to dangerous and mostly unpredictable adverse effects.

One of the indicators of the efficiency and effectiveness of the state is the number and quality of e-government services. However the development of e-government is contingent upon a number of determinants. In the text of the following groups separated such conditions: technical and technological, social, economic, legal, political and organizational. Given the level of development and the characteristics of e-government in Poland, it is crucial to be attributed to the first two categories: issues related to technical and technological and social.

Jednym z wyznacznikow sprawności i efektywności funkcjonowania panstwa jest liczba i jakośc uslug publicznych świadczonych drogą elektroniczną. Oczekiwany rozwoj e-administracji publicznej uwarunkowany jest szeregiem determinant. W opracowaniu wyodrebniono nastepujące grupy takich uwarunkowan: techniczno-technologiczne, spoleczne, ekonomiczne, prawne, polityczne i organizacyjne. Z uwagi na poziom rozwoju oraz specyfike e-administracji w Polsce kluczowe znaczenie nalezy przypisac dwom pierwszym kategoriom, tj. związanym z kwestiami techniczno-technologicznymi oraz spolecznymi.