Researchers from Ljubljana and Klagenfurt on a Study Visit in Warsaw
From 21 to 25 September 2026, researchers from Alpen-Adria University Klagenfurt and the Research Centre of the Scientific Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts (ZRC-SAZU) in Ljubljana visited the Institute of Ethnology and Cultural Anthropology at the University of Warsaw (IEiAK UW) for a study visit as part of the project “What Is Urgent? European Climate Neutrality Policy for Cities and Its Local Interpretations” (EU-URGE), which is being carried out at the Institute with funding from an NCN OPUS-LAP grant.
Besides working on the book proposal, the research team engaged with several municipal institutions addressing issues related to climate change and ecology, including the Służew Community Centre, which runs a community garden; Kamien Pavilion; and the Urban Forests’ Centre for Ecological Education.
The meeting with the representatives of the Municipal Office for Air Protection and Climate Policy was held, enabling team members to delve into the specifics of Mission 100 engagement by Warsaw municipal administration.
There were also two ethnographic walks: one on Vistula “wild side” led by urban activist and writer Jan Mencwel, and the other along the “climate path” in Mokotów.
A seminar on water in cities was organized with invited speakers: Małgorzata Owczarska, Magdalena Siemaszko and Zuzanna Derlacz. By speaking of their anthropological, artistic and applied projects involving rivers, wetlands and sea in Poland and beyond, the participants triggered the EU-URGE team to consider the fluid, temporally and spatially dispersed aspects of urgency as well as to reflect on the methodological approaches that transcend anthropocentrism.
Joint Fieldwork participants:
Alexandra Schwell, Johannes Kroeger (Alpen-Adria University, Klagenfurt)
Saša Poljak Istenič, Tatiana Bajuk Senčar, Nina Vodopivec (ZRC-SAZU, Ljubljana)
Anna Horolets, Renata Putkowska-Smoter, Maria Małanicz-Przybylska, Maja Wróblewska (Institute of Ethnology and Cultural Anthropology, University of Warsaw)
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Photos by M. Małanicz-Przybylska and A. Horolets
