Pogledi na regionalni energetski prehod: intervjuji z deležniki v dveh slovenskih regijahVečanje rabe obnovljivih virov energije (OVE) je ena glavnih usmeritev Evropske komisije.Kljub temu projekti pogosto naletijo na nasprotovanja različnih

Background: Slovenian children are facing considerable health challenges from the rapid social changes that influence their opportunity to engage in daily physical activity. Objective: To overlay the social changes to the established Report Card model as a means of con-textualising the extreme changes in physical activity and fitness observed over several years. Methods: Benchmarks were graded for 10 core indicators, plus two (Sleep, Seasonal Variations). Active Healthy Kids Slovenia members met (predominantly via zoom) liaising with team leader(s) on a flexible, individual basis, based on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) regulations, over the similar to 2-year assessment period of the project. Data were separated to the years prior to, 'pre' 2018-2020, and 'during' the global pandemic (2020-2021). Where sufficient data existed for both timeframes, grades were averaged to produce an overall grade. Results: Grade results are expressed as pre/during/final grade, where the final grade (bolded) is a straight average of the two preceding time epochs: Overall Physical Activity (A-/A-/A-), Organized Sport and Physical Activity (C+/C/C), Active Play (D/C+/C), Active Transport (C/INC/C), Sedentary Behaviour (B/C/ C+), Physical Fitness (A+/A-/A), Family and Peers (B+/INC/B+), Schools (A/A/A), Community and Envi-ronment (A+/A+/A+), Government (A/F/D), Sleep (D-/INC/D-), Seasonal Variations (D/C-/D+). Conclusion: Although Slovenia has some of the most consistently physically-active children in the world, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic exerted significant reductions in physical activity opportunities, and especially when coupled with funding re-distributions, resulted in the steepest decline of child physical fitness observed within the >35-year history of Slovenia's well-established national fitness surveillance system. (C) 2023 The Society of Chinese Scholars on Exercise Physiology and Fitness. Published by Elsevier (Singapore) Pte Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

The European Union's Green Deal aims to make Europe climate neutral by 2050, boost the economy with green technology, create sustainable industry and mobility, and reduce pollution. Alongside environmental and economic goals, it also emphasises social justice and inclusion for all. The Green Transition is particularly important at regional level, as it is strongly linked to regional resources and its success depends on the potential and capacity of regions to transform themselves into green, sustainable and socially just environments with thriving economies. This monograph ('Green Transition at the Regional Level') is a contribution to this. The authors address the spatial aspects of the energy transition and the issue of local energy concepts, assessing the role of revitalising functionally degraded areas for the green transition and undeveloped building land in the light of sustainable mobility. In the area of mobility, the focus is on mobility poverty and the role of cycling for the green transition, two chapters deal with agricultural adaptation and area branding as an approach to rural development, and the last chapter presents the experience of strategic development and innovation partnerships, using the circular economy as an example.

This paper shows a novel approach of assessing landscape elements and their contribution to CES using two methods of data collection. The paper attempts to bridge the identification gap between CES and structures providing them by introducing different methods of 1) field evaluation, allowing interaction in person and 2) through an online survey, which, although restrictive in terms of interaction, facilitates the processing of the collected data. A checklist of landscape elements important for CES is proposed and investigated – which elements are highly valued, where they are valued, and how they are valued across Slovenia as a case example. The sequence of methods includes literature review, field surveying in 18 test areas, and validation through an online questionnaire. The results indicate that identity is the common denominator of landscape elements' CES value, linked to both widespread and region-specific elements assessment. Vegetation and water elements are strongly associated with CES of aesthetic and health. The built elements and cultivated elements are associated with heritage and traditional knowledge.Both field research and online surveying have their strengths and limitations. However, conclusions can be drawn about landscape elements important for identity and other CES. The study highlights the complexity of individual perceptions and the need for different evaluation methods, including in-person and online surveys. The methodology used can be applied, with some adaptations, to specific sites depending on the planning problem, as well as a research approach for fundamental or detailed CES and landscape evaluation studies.

Although each landscape has its own identity, only some of them are recognized as nationally important because of their cultural and natural values and their contribution to national identity. In Slovenia, these landscapes are listed in the national Spatial Development Strategy (adopted in 2004). However, this list was neither supported by implementation instruments nor integrated in any conservation or management policy documents and was poorly integrated into spatial plans. The aim of this research was to renew the methodology for identifying landscapes of national importance. The methods included in-depth interviews with experts, an online questionnaire, participatory workshops, and field visits. The questionnaire results showed that only eight landscapes from the original list of 62 were explicitly recognized as nationally important, which confirmed the hypothesis that the initial method was not transparent and that the criteria were biased. The proposed approach included the following criteria: (1) representativeness, (2) the quality of the landscape features, and (3) the cultural and scientific value. The methodology was accompanied with the list of landscape features and landscape types that are important for Slovenian national identity; recommendations for implementing the method on national, regional, and local levels; and the general guidelines for spatial planning and management of these landscapes.

Territorial Impact Assessment (TIA) is a policy Strategic Environmental Assessment type tool used in the European Union (EU), for European and EU Member States levels as well as across Member States in, for example, trans-border regions. It is closely connected with the EU concept of Territorial Cohesion, which is based on the idea that no EU citizen should be disadvantaged in terms of access to public services, housing, or employment opportunities just by living in a particular region. To date, TIA has been applied in particular to European directives and other legislation in research projects in order to assess territorially diverse socio-economic, cultural and environmental impacts (both, positive and negative). This chapter examines and reflects on the ideas behind TIA, and presents and discusses two applications in practice.

This chapter presents the results of the European ESPON EATIA research project in which a Territorial Impact Assessment (TIA) methodology was developed for administrations in EU member states in order to inform their national positions in European draft directives’ negotiation processes. Rather than applying another EU-wide top-down quantitative modelling approach based on indicators, the EATIA project explored the possibility to use a qualitative bottom-up approach that is simple to perform and comprehend for regional and/or local stakeholders, and national administrations of the 27 EU member states. The project was conducted between 2010 and 2012 in a transnational manner, connecting four universities and ministries, responsible for planning from the UK, Portugal, Slovenia and the Netherlands. The main output of the project is a TIA framework (Fischer TB, Sykes O, Gore T, Marot N, Golobič M, Pinho P, … Perdicoulis A. Territorial impact assessment of European Draft Directives—the emergence of a new policy assessment instrument. Eur Plan Stud 23(3): 433–451, 2015), based on a process consisting of screening, scoping, assessment and evaluation, with possible techniques allocated to each of these stages, and proposed governance arrangements. Testing of the TIA framework on various EU directives (e.g. Natura 2000, SEVESO) has shown that the approach meets the expectations of experts, but its success to a large extent rests on the commitment of the governing stakeholders to engage with and contribute to the process.

While renewable energy sources enjoy high public support, projects are rarely implemented without opposition. The term energy landscapes indicates that landscape change is amongst the most frequent issues. This study researched lay people’s perceptions of landscapes changed by solar power plants. The first objective was to discover how likely solar power plants are to be noticed in the landscape. The second objective was to determine the associations observers make when spotting a solar power plant. The data was collected by participatory photography and focus groups. Participants visited six solar power plants. The results show that they are highly noticeable and contentious objects. Participants who understood the landscape as a rural idyll disapproved of solar power plants, while for those who perceived the landscape through a utilitarian narrative, the (mis)fit of the solar power plant depended on its relation to the surrounding landscape structure. Landscape degradation was contrasted with low-carbon energy and developmental benefits. The results provide evidence on the interdependence of visual and non-visual factors and suggest improvements in planning and design of solar power plants. While the method gives a rich in-depth insight into landscape perception, it is also context dependent and needs further research to obtain more generalisable results.

The biodiversity of agricultural landscapes is strongly dependent on extensive traditional management practices and the proportion of natural and semi-natural habitats within the landscape. Within Europe, contemporary agricultural management practices, as well as nature conservation regimes are often oriented toward establishing suitable preconditions for maintaining biodiversity; this requires operational methods to assess and monitor the effects of policy measures on landscape heterogeneity. In this article a method for evaluating landscape heterogeneity of agricultural landscapes is proposed, which measures two main components: (1) land cover heterogeneity and (2) landscape features’ heterogeneity. The first can be defined as a function of compositional (number of land cover categories) and configurational (distribution of land cover categories) heterogeneity, whereas the latter is the result of landscape features diversity (the number of different types of landscape features) and landscape features count (the overall number of landscape features). Considering the proposed index, the heterogeneity of agricultural landscapes is ranked into three classes. The proposed land use and landscape features inventory, combined with the landscape heterogeneity evaluation index, could serve as a basis for the development of landscape management practices, which aim to fulfill objectives of several EU policies (e.g. Common Agricultural Policy, Natura 2000). Nevertheless, spatial context, as well as nature protection and agricultural objectives need to be considered when applying the proposed index in management practice.

Policies and strategies to develop renewable energy and the rates of successful deployment vary from country to country. Academic literature is rife with examples of recurring problems and malpractice in the implementation of renewable energy projects. We could see each national and sectoral effort as an ‘experiment’ in the early phase of our attempted transition to a low carbon energy system. What lessons can we learn from a comparative analysis of these experiments? This paper seeks to draw generic lessons not from what has gone wrong but from national case studies that stand out in a best way. Through a European academic network, we have selected and analysed 51 ‘smart practice’ case studies of renewable energy development from 20 countries. We present the outcomes of both qualitative and quantitative analysis of these case studies (smart practice criteria) and discuss a set of generic findings concerning specific types of smart practices and problems of potential transferability of projects to other regions. With regards to policy relevance, the findings can be used for evaluating portfolios of renewable energy projects developed to date and for setting guiding principles for project design, spatial planning and consent by means of cross-national learning and fertilization.

The Slovenian national planning policy has been in a renewal process since 2014. The process required an evaluation to reveal to which level the defined measures have been delivered and discuss the policy's future role. The mixed-methods evaluation approach consisted of a document analysis, a questionnaire with local communities and interviews with representatives of the ministries. Implementation of measures depends on multiple factors: capacity, personal priorities of actors, interpretation skills, financial support, political will for co-operation, etc. The potential to mitigate the influence of factors on implementation through a co-evolutionary trend of planning is elaborated in the light of Europeanization.

Agriculture is among the main drivers of Alpine cultural landscape diversity. Therefore the specific integration of landscape diversity into the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) objectives can potentially have an important effect on cultural landscape diversity. This paper presents an evaluation of a selected set of CAP's agricultural measures and their impact on this diversity, using quantitative analysis combined with expert qualitative evaluation. Our hypothesis is that although the CAP's measures consider landscape diversity up to a point, they are too general to embrace the diversity of European landscapes and may have unwanted impacts for the diversity of Alpine landscapes.

Gorsko kolesarjenje postaja vse bolj množicno. Umescanje te dejavnosti v prostor je zahtevno zaradi razlicnih interesov med uporabniki prostora ter zapletene pravne ureditve. Za gorske kolesarje so med razlicnimi potmi najbolj zaželene enoslednice, to so ozke, razgibane in utrjene poti iz naravnih materialov. Analizirali smo pravno ureditev gorskega kolesarjenja v naravnem okolju v Sloveniji, in sicer na nacionalni in lokalni ravni. Na primeru dveh testnih tras na obmocju zahodnega Pohorja, ki sta potekali skoraj izkljucno v gozdnem prostoru, smo preverili možnosti umescanja gorskokolesarskih poti v naravno okolje. Pri tem smo postavili hipotezo, da ob doslednem upostevanju pravnih predpisov umescanje enoslednic v naravno okolje ni mogoce. Prvi del raziskave je temeljil na analizi pravnih predpisov in primerjavi ureditve v treh drugih srednjeevropskih državah. Za drugi del raziskave smo izbrali testni trasi ter zbrali in analizirali vse dostopne prostorske podatke. Obe trasi smo terensko pregledali in ju ocenili po izdelanem postopku, ki obsega sest korakov. Vse prostorske podatke smo obdelali v geografskem informacijskem sistemu. Pregled pravnih predpisov, ki ureja to podrocje, kaže na nedosledno rabo pojmov in razlicne možnosti razlag pravnih predpisov glede umescanja gorskega kolesarjenja v naravno okolje v Sloveniji. Z analizo testnih tras smo ovrgli postavljeno hipotezo, saj smo ugotovili, da je umescanje enoslednic v naravno okolje mogoce, vendar smo pri tem opozorili na pomembne omejitve in nejasnosti.

This article examines practical measures for integrating risk assessment of extreme weather events into spatial planning. An approach that integrates risks due to ice storms into spatial suitability analysis is presented in two case studies: in siting transmission and distribution power lines, and in siting windfarms. Assessment of risks to the power grid due to ice storms is carried out first. The results of the risk assessment are then used as a basis for analysing proposed alternatives for siting high-voltage power lines and as input in analysing the suitability of space for siting windfarms. The results of a cost-benefit analysis of various alternatives for siting windfarms (an alternative that takes risks due to ice storms into account and one that does not) show that the damage caused by extreme weather events has a significant impact on the economic viability of a plan. There are two options for integrating risk assessment results into planning electric energy infrastructure: by updating engineering standards and by avoiding areas where greater damage to infrastructure due to extreme weather events is expected. Risk assessment provides important information that can affect decisions about land use and decisions about technical measures for enhancing the physical resilience of infrastructure.

Cultural landscapes, which were developed and maintained by traditional agricultural practices, are important for preservation of (European) biodiversity, but they are undergoing changes due to either their abandonment or intensification of agricultural production. Nature conservation and agricultural policies on the EU and national levels have developed several conservation instruments to mitigate the negative effects of these trends on biodiversity. Due to high heterogeneity of cultural landscapes and their dependence on socio-economic context, member states of the EU are supposed to define the objectives and develop measures to protect their biodiversity, including the elements and characteristics of the landscape, which are important for biodiversity. In the presented case study for Slovenia we developed a model for identification and mapping of the elements of landscape heterogeneity, important for biodiversity. The main aim was to provide robust and easy-to-handle knowledge base which could be used to support formulation and implementation of policy measures in the nature conservation and agri-environment sectors. The model has been tested in three pilot areas to verify to which extent the existing digital data and the GIS tool, developed for this aim, could be used to adequately identify the landscape features, important for biodiversity in Slovenia, in particular in the nature conservation areas.

Background: This is the first assessment of the Republic of Slovenia’s efforts to synthesize and report physical activity (PA) standards for children and youth following the Active Healthy Kids Global Alliance grading system model. Methods: The Republic of Slovenia Report Card relies on research findings published in peer-reviewed journals, data compiled from national databases, and government initiatives which have been monitoring physical fitness standards in schools for the past 34 years (SLOfit and ACDSi). The Report Card initiative has been jointly coordinated by the University of Primorska and the University of Ljubljana. A Research Work Group consisting of 12 representatives from various aspects of Slovenia’s public, private, and government sectors convened to evaluate evidence and assign grades for each PA indicator. Results: Grades ( A , highest, to F , lowest; INC , incomplete) for Slovenia are as follows: Overall Physical Activity ( A -), Organized Sport Participation ( B -), Active Play ( D ), Active Transportation ( C ), Sedentary Behaviors ( B +), Family and Peers ( INC ), Schools ( A ), Community and the Built Environment ( INC ), and Government ( B +). Conclusions: This inclusive PA report indicates that overall physical activity minutes remain high in Slovenian children and youth; however, more research is needed to determine the effects of family life, peer influences, and the built environment on active play behaviors.

V članku so obravnavani praktični ukrepi za vključevanje rezultatov ocene tveganja zaradi izrednih vremenskih dogodkov v postopek prostorskega načrtovanja. Na primerih ocene tveganja zaradi žleda za prenosno in distribucijsko elektroenergetsko omrežje ter za vetrne elektrarne je predstavljen postopek, ki vnaša rezultate ocene tveganja v analizo ustreznosti prostora. Najprej je izdelana ocena tveganja za prenosno in distribucijsko omrežje zaradi žleda. Rezultati ocene tveganja so uporabljeni kot podlaga za presojo predlaganih različic tras visokonapetostnega daljnovoda in kot vhodni podatek za analizo ustreznosti prostora za umestitev vetrnih elektrarn. Različici za umestitev vetrnih elektrarn z upoštevanjem tveganja in brez tega smo primerjali z gospodarskega vidika in ugotovili, da lahko škode zaradi izrednih vremenskih dogodkov pomembno vplivajo na gospodarsko upravičenost načrta. Ugotavljamo, da lahko rezultate ocene tveganja na dva načina vključimo v načrtovanje elektroenergetske infrastrukture, in sicer s posodobitvijo inženirskih standardov in izogibanjem območjem, na katerih bi lahko nastale največje škode na infrastrukturi zaradi izrednih vremenskih dogodkov. Ocena tveganja je pomembna informacija, ki lahko vpliva na odločitve v zvezi z rabo prostora in tehničnimi ukrepi za povečanje odpornosti infrastrukture.

Recent EU agriculture and nature conservation policies explicitly target cultural landscape preservation. In absence of a national policy on cultural landscapes, the measures of these policies are transposed to national legislation without much consideration of their impacts in local territories. A framework for impact assessment of these measures on cultural landscape diversity is presented and tested in six landscape units of Slovenian coastal landscapes. High landscape and bio-diversity of the observed landscapes is reflected in the existing (informal) guidelines for management. These are used as reference framework to evaluate the measures of EU policies. The approach is based on the territorial impact assessment concept using expert opinion and an anaylsis of data on land-use change. The expected impacts are positive in both units where either intensification or forest regrowing processes have already diminished landscape diversity. In other four units, the expected impacts are ambiguous and difficult to forecast, but may also involve negative consequences.