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The paper presents a review of contributions to the scientific discussion on modern methods and tools for public participation in urban planning. This discussion took place in Obrzycko near Poznań, Poland. The meeting was designed to allow for an ample discussion on the themes of public participatory geographic information systems, participatory geographic information systems, volunteered geographic information, citizen science, Geoweb, geographical information and communication technology, Geo-Citizen participation, geo-questionnaire, geo-discussion, GeoParticipation, Geodesign, Big Data and urban planning. Participants in the discussion were scholars from Austria, Brazil, the Czech Republic, Finland, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, the United Kingdom, and the USA. A review of public participation in urban planning shows new developments in concepts and methods rooted in geography, landscape architecture, psychology, and sociology, accompanied by progress in geoinformation and communication technologies. The discussions emphasized that it is extremely important to state the conditions of symmetric cooperation between city authorities, urban planners and public participation representatives, social organizations, as well as residents.

In the modern world, tourism is a very dynamically growing industry with significant impact on the economic prosperity of many regions or even countries. The paper presents the geotourism potential of the 12 show (commercial) caves in Poland before and during the current pandemic time. Survey results demonstrate that caves are major geotourist attractions. In 2019, they were visited by a total of almost 950,000 people. The attendance might have exceeded even a million if the popular Mroźna Cave in the Tatras had not been temporarily closed to visitors due to a rockfall in winter period 2018/2019. In 2020, all the show caves combined were visited by a more than 390,000 people, which amounted to about 41% of the total attendance recorded for 2019. The most visited cave proved to be Smocza Jama (Dragon's Den) in the centre of Kraków, which recorded almost 422,000 visitors in 2019. A preliminary assessment of the attractiveness of the caves as geosites is given. The most attractive caves as geosites were identified as: Bear Cave, Upper Wierzchowska Cave, and Bat Cave. It is possible to confidently assert that the celebration of the International Year of Caves and Karst (IYCK) in 2021–2022 will increase interest in caves and translate into a revival of cave tourism.

The implementation of nature‐based solutions that involve natural processes to mutually decrease flood risk and protect natural ecosystems can be an answer to the demand for resilient flood risk management (FRM). As an example of a nature‐based solution, flood polders have the potential to deliver those benefits; however, a need for innovation is observed in the field of redefining, combining, and reformulating existing approaches to improve the welfare and wellbeing of individuals and communities. This article aims to investigate polder implementation and management processes, perceived as a potential introduction of social innovation in Poland and Hungary, where social innovation in FRM is required but where the introduction of innovative solutions stalls at different stages. Based on a comparative analysis, a set of factors for effective social innovation was formulated regarding formal and legal conditions and economic and social aspects of polder management and implementation. Each of identified factors can either allow or hinder public engagement and successful social innovation.

Geo-questionnaires have been used in a variety of domains to collect public preferences, behavioural patterns, and spatially-explicit local knowledge, for academic research and environmental and urban planning. This paper provides an overview of the method focusing on the methodical characteristics of geo-questionnaires including software functions, types of collected data, and techniques of data analysis. The paper also discusses broader methodical issues related to the practice of deploying geo-questionnaires such as respondent selection and recruitment, representativeness, and data quality. The discussion of methodical issues is followed by an overview of the recent examples of geo-questionnaire applications in Poland, and the discussion of socio-technical aspects of geo-questionnaire use in spatial planning.

Demnate commune and High-Tessaout valley are located in the Moroccan central High-Atlas. They have a great and much diversified geological and geomorphological heritage and exceptional landscapes of high mountains. The data obtained from the current work indicate that the studied area present high tourist vocation, in the fact that this territory preserves a large number of geosites linked to many witnesses fossils of extinct animals such dinosaurs footprints, outcropping rock formations of the Precambrian and Mesozoic. Further, it has many remarkable landforms and geosites such as canyons, natural bridge, spectacular waterfalls and scree slopes. The findings support that the area attracts many tourists every year. However, this number remains restricted due to the lack of tools of promotion and mediation of its geoheritage and also due to the low exploitation of the geodiversity. Regarding this situation, geotouristic routes represented on touristic map appear as an essential tool for geotourism promotion and as an efficient means of geosciences popularisation. This paper illustrates three geotouristic routes describing the main geosites in rural areas of Demnate and High-Tessaout valley. These geotourism itineraries can help to explain the high potential interest of the studied areas in geotourism terms.

This study compares adjacent and bivariate maps in communicating variance-based global sensitivity analysis (GSA) results for a geodiversity assessment spatial multi-criteria model and examines the influence of prior exposure to geodiversity and map reading skills on interpretation. It analyzes the quality of map interpretation, confidence levels, and map communication effectiveness. The findings indicate that there is no significant difference in the quality of map interpretation or confidence levels between the two map types. However, there are nuanced differences in interpretive patterns, suggesting the need for further investigation into factors affecting map interpretation. Adjacent maps are more effective in identifying factors linked to uncertainty in high geodiversity values, while bivariate maps excel in understanding spatial variability. Prior exposure to geodiversity and map reading skills do not significantly impact interpretation quality or confidence levels. Future research could explore other factors influencing map effectiveness and explore the cognitive processes underlying map interpretation. Understanding these processes could lead to more effective strategies for communicating the results of a GSA for spatial models through maps.

This paper presents the results of geohazards mapping and evaluation their role in the modifying of the urban landscape in Poznań, Poland. Information on geohazards specific to an urban lowland area (river floods, flash floods, mass movement, wind erosion) because of increasing climate change was compiled into a geomorphological map. The most spatially widespread geohazards in Poznań include: (a) on moraine hills/uplands: mass movement, wind erosion, and flash floods (4.9% of the city area); (b) on outwash plains: mass movement and flash floods (8.6% of the city area); (c) on fluvial landforms: mass movement and river floods (9.8% of the city area); (d) within plains of various origin: flash floods (7.6% of the city area). Mass movement affecting short but numerous (and locally steep) slopes, and flash floods are the most widespread geohazards (16 and 14%, of Poznań's area, respectively). Extensive urbanisation especially the expansion of impervious surfaces increases the high risk of flash floods.

The preparation of a proper zoning plan or landscape-ecological plan requires taking into account recognition of the natural values of an area covered by the plan and evaluating its abiotic and biotic diversities. The aim of the paper is to present the new approach to the procedure of geodiversity and biodiversity assessment. This procedure is used to characterise abiotic and biotic heterogeneity of the postglacial landscape modified by a man, tested on Dębnica River catchment (Western Pomerania, Poland). This catchment is a representative example illustrating the landscape of Central European Plain. The analytical algorithm of the geodiversity assessment is based on appropriate selection of the evaluation criteria: lithological, relative heights, landform fragmentation, hydrographical elements and mesoclimatic conditions. Biodiversity was assessed on the basis of real vegetation, potential natural vegetation and the degree of anthropisation of the natural vegetation with respect to syngenesis of plant associations. Seven factor maps were obtained: five for the diversity of abiotic elements, and two for the diversity of biotic elements, which became the basis for the creation of total geodiversity and biodiversity maps. Maps produced in accordance with given methodology may find a wide range of applications.

The journal , founded by Professor Stefan Kozarski in 1974, has played a key role in the development of geography and related sciences for five decades, promoting both Polish and international scientific research. Initially focused on physical geography, it evolved towards interdisciplinarity, encompassing a broad range of themes within the geographical sciences. Through its collaboration with the Sciendo platform and adoption of the Open Access model, the journal has expanded its international reach, attracting authors from over 40 countries and achieving an Impact Factor of 1 in 2023. Its most influential publications have explored statistical methods, geodiversity, and geomorphological heritage, highlighting the journal’s interdisciplinary character. The 50th anniversary is an opportunity to reflect on its contribution to the advancement of geography and to set new goals in addressing global challenges such as environmental crises, urbanisation, and digital technology development. remains an invaluable platform for knowledge exchange, inspiring future researchers and supporting sustainable development at local and global levels.