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The article presents the scientific infrastructure in the field of GIScience in Poland. It shows the history of the development of the discipline, key research topics, academic and research units, and the scope of national and international scientific cooperation.

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 paper proposes a joint use of two global sensitivity analysis methods to evaluate the influence of model inputs on spatially explicit outputs. The analysis is conducted on spatial outputs of geodiversity assessment. First, the screening method is used to identify inputs with low importance and interactions, which can be discarded in later analysis. A simplified model is compared with a complete model using the mean and variance calculated on spatial outputs to evaluate outcome uncertainty. Finally, the variance decomposition method computes two sensitivity index maps per input. The results are mapped using bivariate classification, allowing for the simultaneous identification of regions with higher geodiversity scores and their corresponding variability. The research reveals that the streamlined approach preserves the overall patterns of outcome uncertainty and sensitivity observed in an original model while simultaneously reducing the number of outcome maps to interpret. Additionally, bivariate mapping proves efficient in concurrently depicting spatial sensitivity and interaction effects. The analytic efficiencies afforded by the presented approach and bivariate mapping enhance the operational knowledge of spatially explicit uncertainty and sensitivity analysis by simplifying the computational procedure and offering an alternative way of visualizing and interpreting input factors driving the sensitivity of model output. KEY POLICY HIGHLIGHTS: Spatially explicit uncertainty and sensitivity analysis extends the geodiversity assessment methods and comprises the next step in improving the accuracy of geodiversity assessments for land management decisions. An integrated uncertainty and sensitivity analysis helps focus on high-priority areas (high sensitivity and low uncertainty) to improve assessment reliability. The uncertainty and sensitivity analysis in models with spatially explicit output results depicted on maps can help reduce field research expenses by identifying a particular area or a specific natural component that warrants better-quality data. Bivariate maps employed to visualize the results of spatially explicit uncertainty and sensitivity analysis can potentially reduce the cognitive effort of visually switching between multiple single-variable (theme) maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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.

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.

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.

Thermokarst lakes are the main components of the vast Arctic and subarctic landscapes. These lakes can serve as geoindicators of permafrost degradation; therefore, proper lake distribution assessment methods are necessary. In this study, we compared four machine learning methods to improve existing lake detection systems. The northern part of Yakutia was selected as the study area owing to its complex environment. We used data from Landsat 8 and spectral indices to take into account the spectral characteristics of the lakes, and MERIT DEM data to take into account the topography. The lowest accuracy was found for the classification and regression trees (CART) method (overall accuracy = 81%). On the other hand, the random forests (RF) classification provided the best results (overall accuracy = 92%), and only this classification coped well in all problematic areas, such as shaded and humid areas, near steep slopes, burn scars, and rivers. The altitude and bands SWIR1 (Short wave infrared 1), SWIR2 (Short wave infrared 2), and Green were the most important. Spectral indices did not have significant impact on the classification results in the specific conditions of the thermokarst lakes environment. 17,700 lakes were identified with the total area of 271.43 km2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poznań, a city in central-western Poland, is located in the lowland region but has no less attractive geomorphological and human history. It was here that Poland was born at the end of the tenth century. The city’s location is connected with the meridian course of the Warta River valley. In contrast, in the northern part of the city, there is a vast area of the frontal moraines of the Poznań Phase of the Weichselian Glaciation. Against the backdrop of the geomorphological development of the city, the article presents the existing geosites, classified as urban geosites. The present geosites include three lapidaries with Scandinavian postglacial erratics, one of them also with stoneware, a fragment of a frontal push moraine and impact craters. Besides, three locations of proposed geosites with rich geomorphological and/or human history were identified. These are as follows: the peat bog located in the northern part of the city, defence ramparts as exhumed anthropogenic forms, and the Warta River valley. The existing and proposed geosites in Poznań were evaluated in three ways. In general, it should be assumed that the proposed new geosites are higher ranked than the current ones.

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.

This work presents two different strategies of ABM for management of selected lakeland landscapes and their impact on sustainable development. Two different lakeland research areas as well as two different sets of agents and their decision rules were compared. In Strategy 1 decisions made by farmers and their influence on the land use/cover pattern as well as the indirect consequence of phosphorus and nitrogen delivery to the water bodies were investigated. In this strategy, a group of farmer agents is encouraged to participate in an agri-environmental program. The Strategy 2 combines the decisions of farmers, foresters and local authorities. The agents in the model share a common goal to produce a spatial plan. The land use/cover patterns arising from different attitudes and decision rules of the involved actors were investigated. As the basic spatial unit, the first strategy employed a landscape unit, i.e. lake catchment whereas the second strategy used an administrative unit, i.e. commune. Both strategies resulted in different land use/cover patterns and changes, which were evaluated in terms of sustainability policy. The main conclusion for Strategy 1 is that during 5 years of farmer’s participation in the agri-environmental program, there was significant decrease of nutrient leaching to the lake. The main conclusion for Strategy 2 should be stated that cooperating of the agents is better for the natural environment than the competitions between them. In both strategies, agents’ decisions influence the environment but different spatial units of analysis express this environment.

Various factors influence the spatial and temporal patterns of land cover and land use in lakeland landscapes. Land use/cover change (LUCC) is one of the crucial factors influencing both natural processes that occur in lakelands and lakes and anthropogenic processes, which intensify these changes. Therefore, LUCC at a local and regional scale may be treated as an important geoindicator for the functioning of the lakeland landscape. Nowadays, LUCC mostly depends on different human decisions. In the existing literature, the consequences of negative changes have already been widely recognized. Conversely, in this paper, we focus on the possible positive effects of LUCC. To that end, we built an agent-based model to show how selected human decisions may positively influence lakeland landscapes and lakes. We apply the model to the Gniezno Lakeland, Poland. Based on the environmental decisions of farmers, the model demonstrates how the LUCC pattern may change in time and space and how those changes may influence freshwater quality in four individual lake catchments of the Gniezno Lakeland.

The main goal of the presented work is to determine the current trophic state of 31 lakes located in Poznań Lakeland. These lakes are included in the lake monitoring programme executed by the Voivodship Environmental Protection Inspectorate in Poznań. The place in the trophic classification for investigated lakes was determined as well as the relationships between their trophic state indices. The trophic state of investigated lakes in the research area is poor. More than a half of the investigated lakes are eutrophic. Depending on the factor that is taken into account the trophic state of investigated lakes differs radically.

Located in north-western Poland, the Bukowska Forest and Goleniowska Forest are vast woodlands consisting of areas with a homogeneous species composition that have been scarcely affected by humans. In this respect, they provided an excellent subject for scientific research, the purpose of which was to determine quantitative differences in selected vegetation indices of pine and beech stands in various periods during their vegetation seasons. Another purpose was to characterize the variation in these indices for each stand in its vegetation season. Four Landsat 5 TM images taken in 2007 and 2010 at four different points of vegetation season provided the basis for the analysis. In the analysis, 19 wooded areas with a homogeneous species composition were tested. In Bukowska Forest, the tested area was a beech stand, and in Goleniowska Forest, it was a pine stand. Acquired data was used to calculate the following vegetation indices: Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Transformed Vegetation Index (TVI), Green Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (Green NDVI), Normalized Difference Greenness Index (NDGI) and Normalized Difference Index (NDI). Subsequent research allowed to establish that the beech and pine stands differed significantly with respect to their calculated vegetation indices. These differences derived both from the biochemical and structural attributes of leaves and needles, as well as from transformations that occur in the stands during vegetation seasons. Analysis of the indices’ allowed us to determine these differences and the influence of the stands’ phenological phases on the indices.