Marek Więckowski

Professor Marek Więckowski serves as Head of the Department of Urban and Population Geography and Deputy Director for Scientific Affairs at the Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IGiPZ PAN) in Warsaw. With a distinguished career spanning over three decades, he has established himself as a leading expert in border studies, tourism geography, and spatial development, particularly focusing on Central European border regions.

His research interests center on political borders and cross-border cooperation, tourism geography, transport geography, spatial mobility, and regional development. Professor Więckowski's work demonstrates how geopolitical transformations, particularly Poland's integration into the European Union and Schengen area, have reshaped border regions and created new opportunities for cross-border cooperation and tourism development. His research methodology combines spatial analysis with historical and social perspectives to understand the complex dynamics of border regions.

His scholarly output reveals a consistent focus on the transformation of border spaces, with particular emphasis on Polish-Slovak and Polish-German borderlands. The publication trend shows increasing attention to sustainable tourism development in border regions, the impact of geopolitical changes on spatial organization, and the evolving relationship between borders, heritage, and tourism. His most recent work explores cutting-edge topics such as border memorialization, the spatial dimension of tourism in the Anthropocene, and the tourism potential of border tripoints.

• 2004: Honorable Mention in the competition for the best textbook in Europe (4th place for the 'Odkrywamy Świat' geography textbook series)
• 2002: Scholarship from French Ministry of Science for post-doc at ENS-LSH (extended in 2003)
• 2000: Scholarship from MUG Commission on Population Geography for International Geographical Union Congress in Seoul
• 2000: Nomination for H. Steinhaus Award for popular science books ('Polskie naj...')
• 1994: Honorable Mention in Master's Thesis Competition of Polish Geographical Society
• 1984 & 1989: Laureate of Geography Olympiads (2nd and 4th place)

Professor Więckowski has actively supervised numerous research projects focusing on cross-border cooperation, tourism development in border regions, and spatial planning. His international collaborations, particularly with French and Slovak scholars, have significantly contributed to the understanding of European border dynamics. He has also been instrumental in developing educational materials, including geography textbooks that received international recognition. His current research explores the intersection of geopolitical changes, environmental challenges, and tourism development in border regions, with increasing attention to sustainability and heritage preservation in the Anthropocene era.