Geographia Polonica (2025) vol. 98, iss. 3

Abstract

The market for non-alcoholic drinks is increasingly changing towards healthy craft beverages. The change is characterised by the use of high-quality natural ingredients, with no preservatives or artificial ingredients, which resonates with modern society’s demanding expectations. Natural craft sodas (NCS) offer an opportunity for development for those entrepreneurs who want to make and promote high-quality products while strengthening local resources. Like all craft products, NCS are associated with authenticity. This paper outlines different perspectives on authenticity and identifies authenticity modes that Polish NCS producers create andrefer to. Our study used in-depth interviews and a survey. Producers operating in the growing Polish market for NCS create and refer to all 6 modes of authenticity, but to a varying extent. The types of authenticity they emphasise most strongly is material, biographical and procedural authenticity, followed by oppositional and temporal authenticity. Contrary to expectations, geographical authenticity is less emphasised and, to a certain extent, limited to declarations. While NCS are produced based on local resources, the area of their distributionis much larger (national and international in scope).

Keywords: authenticity, modes of authenticity, craft beverages, market for craft sodas, natural craft sodas, Poland

Michał Męczyński [micmec@amu.edu.pl], Faculty of Human Geography and Planning Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań Bogumiła Krygowskiego 10, 61-680 Poznań: Poland
Ewa Kacprzak [eja@amu.edu.pl], Faculty of Human Geography and Planning Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań Bogumiła Krygowskiego 10, 61-680 Poznań: Poland
Barbara Maćkiewicz [basic@amu.edu.pl], Faculty of Human Geography and Planning Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań Bogumiła Krygowskiego 10, 61-680 Poznań: Poland

Abstract

This article presents an analysis of the influences of European Union (EU) policy and associated national programmes in shaping the objectives of territorial development strategies at sub-regional levels. Our analysis focuses on area-based cross-sectoral partnerships (Local Action Groups – LAGs) in Poland, which received EU funding from 2014-2020 for Community-Led Local Development (CLLD). A range of LAG types are included in the analysis: rural, rural-fisheries, fisheries, and urban. The specific EU policies that support the territorial types of LAG are identified. We use content analysis of the LAGs’ local development strategies (LDSs) to assess and profile the range of objectives described and pursued within them. We found that there are significant differences in the objectives represented across the LDSs, which can be explained by both the type of LAG and their alignment with different EU funding mechanisms. We examine these differences through the lens of the concept of neo-endogenous development, understood as a hybrid of endogenous and exogenous development. We conclude that the concept of neo-endogenous development is an appropriate explanatory tool in understandingthe evolution of LAGs, and we highlight appropriate policy responses are required to manage theneo-endogenous nature of how locally-led development is being charted and supported in practice.

Keywords: European Union policy, neo-endogenous development, Community-Led Local Development, area-based partnerships, Local Action Groups, development priorities, Poland

Marek Furmankiewicz [marek.furmankiewicz@upwr.edu.pl], Institute of Spatial Management Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences Grunwaldzka 55, 50-357 Wrocław: Poland
Jane Atterton [jane.atterton@sruc.ac.uk], Rural Policy Centre Scotland’s Rural College Peter Wilson Building, Kings Buildings, West Mains Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3JG: United Kingdom
Áine Macken-Walsh [aine.mackenwalsh@teagasc.ie], Teagasc’s Rural Economy and Development Programme Mellows Campus, Athenry, H65 A063 Galway: Ireland

Abstract

This article explores how participatory approaches and transnational cooperation can be advanced to advance multi-level governance in pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals, focusing on SDG 11 “Sustainable cities and communities”. Based on qualitative research in Finland and Sweden we show that participatory approaches fail due to a lack of administrative capacity, path dependencies, societal conflicts and power asymmetries between the actors involved, which limit the transformative scope and legitimacy of policies. We argue that central governments in particular need to take more responsibility, provide more guidance and invest in capacity building and community empowerment at the local level.

Keywords: participation, multi-level governance, transnational cooperation, sustainable urban development, European Arctic, Nordic Model, Finland, Sweden, cities, urban planning

Dorothea Wehrmann [dorothea.wehrmann@idos-research.de], German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS) Tulpenfeld 6, 53113 Bonn: Germany
Katarzyna Radzik-Maruszak [katarzyna.radzik-maruszak@mail.umcs.p], Faculty of Political Science Maria Curie-Skłodowska University M. Curie-Skłodowskiej Square, 20-031 Lublin: Poland
Jacqueline Götze, German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS) Tulpenfeld 6, 53113 Bonn: Germany
Michał Łuszczuk [michal.luszczuk@mail.umcs.pl], Social and Economic Geography Maria Curie-Skłodowska University M. Curie-Skłodowskiej Square, 20-031 Lublin: Poland
Arne Riedel [arne.riedel@ecologic.eu], Ecologic Institute Pfalzburger Str. 43/44, 10717 Berlin: Germany

Abstract

School size is an essential characteristic of the school network and one of the key conditions for the functioning and financing of schools. The main aim of this article is to assess the extent to which school size results from the influence of settlement and population factors (both historical and contemporary). We analysed data for all rural and urban-rural communes in Poland in 2022. A unique three-stage research procedure was applied, combining different categories of regression models (nationwide, regional, and geographically weighted regression [GWR]). The results indicate that settlement and population conditions are significant factors that shape the average school size. Their impact at the national scale is relatively small, but – according to the results of GWR modelling – it is strong in the vicinity of the largest cities and decreases with distance. In addition, four regional models seem to suggest the role of historical factors. These results, however, should be regarded as research artefacts reflecting the specificity of the spatial distribution of contemporary urbanisation processes.

Keywords: settlement system, rural schools, school size, regression analysis, Poland

Artur Bajerski [bajerski@amu.edu.pl], Faculty of Human Geography and Planning Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań Krygowskiego 10, 61-680 Poznań: Poland
Wojciech Kisiała [wojciech.kisiala@ue.poznan.pl], Institute of Informatics and Quantitative Economics Poznań University of Economics and Business Al. Niepodległości 10, 61-875 Poznań: Poland

Abstract

This article examines changes in population growth across subregions of European countries (NUTS 3) between 2018 and 2021. The research period is divided into two subperiods, allowing for a comparative analysis that takes into account the health crisis triggered by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study highlights the growing demographic polarization between subregions within European countries, manifested in the territorial concentration of both population growth and decline. During the analysed period, countries exhibited divergent trends in natural population change, which – especially during the crisis period – showed the strongest correlation with the level of socio-economic development.

Keywords: Webb’s typology, actual growth, natural increase, migrations, NUTS 3, COVID-19

Marzena Walaszek [marwal@amu.edu.pl], Faculty of Human Geography and Planning Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań Bogumiła Krygowskiego 10, 61-680 Poznań: Poland