Real challenges, problems and potential of metropolitan centres are the subject of the first travelling classes of international Urban Management team. The West Warsaw Poviat and the Piaseczno Town and Commune are the areas they visited first. The trip was chaired by Huub Droogh, a lecturer at CDV, a valued urban planner, associated with the Dutch Rothuizen and RDH Urban on a daily basis.
“The choice of the area was not accidental. The rapid development of space is one of the greatest challenges of this century. The administrative boundaries of cities do not reflect, as before, physical, social, economic, cultural or environmental divisions. Bordering with the capital and being part of the so-called The metropolitan area of Warsaw Piaseczno and the West Warsaw Poviat are for students a very concrete example of development processes in the metropolitan area” – emphasizes Sylwia Mikołajczak, dean’s plenipotentiary for Urban Management
Urban Management focuses on practice and learning through projects, which is why the trip program included meetings and working together with practitioners from the first line. Students had the opportunity to meet and talk with the Starost of the Warsaw West Poviat – Jan Żychliński and the Mayor of Piaseczno – Daniel Putkiewicz. They are local government officials with many years of practical experience in management. In the workshop part, students listened to and worked together with people who are decisively involved in planning processes as well as actively engaged in their implementation: Anna Kowalska, Head of the Faculty of Architecture and Construction of the Warsaw West Poviat, Robert Widzem – Chairman of the Economic Policy Committee of the Piaseczno City Council and the Head of the Urban Planning and Architecture Department of the City and Commune – Anna Pakulińska-Attia.
“This was one of the first such trips. Other, including foreign ones, are to give students valuable knowledge, an opportunity to build future professional contacts and open themselves to international experience and practice. It is also a unique opportunity to get to know and compare similar processes in the countries from which our students come” – adds Sylwia Mikołajczak.
Urban Management is a new first cycle course at CDV, implemented within the frame of Polish-Dutch partnership. One of the main lecturers is the renowned Dutch urban planner Huub Droogh. The field connects several scientific disciplines. It educates international specialists in the areas of urban planning and management, who understand the processes and are able to communicate and cooperate with each other.