A researcher with passion and a ministerial award
In October 2023, dr inż. Piotr Kryczka from the Department of Social and Economic Geography of the University of Wrocław received the award from the Minister of Economic Development and Technology as part of the competition for the best diploma theses, doctoral dissertations and publications in the fields of architecture and construction, planning and urban development in the dissertation category.
Dr inż. Piotr Kryczka is a researcher at the Institute of Geography and Regional Development employed as part of the research project “The long-term nature of suburbanization processes around large Polish cities”, implemented with funds from the National Science Centre.
“This award is an extremely joyful culmination of my PhD, which was an important stage of my scientific journey” – dr inż. Piotr Kryczka comments. “Scientific research is sometimes a rollercoaster of emotions, full of frustration and chronic lack of time, but at the same time filled with passion, fascination with the world and the daily discovery of its hidden secrets. This was my experience, as well, so I remember the moment when I received the message from the Ministry very fondly. Appreciation from independent experts is an additional motivation to take on new scientific challenges” –our researcher admits.
In his dissertation, the researcher addressed the issue of locating high-rise buildings, i.e. buildings at least 55 meters high, in urban spaces.
What was the research paper about? We are seeing a global intensification of the location of such buildings, as well as their height. Despite this, the mainstream of scientific research, especially in Europe, is focused on architectural and construction aspects, thus marginalizing extremely important issues related to urban planning and rational management of urban spaces. Hence, the purpose of the paper was to attempt a comprehensive look at the current location trends of high-rise buildings in Poland and Europe, and to systematize the knowledge of multi-criteria urban planning studies on the location of high-rise buildings. Using quantitative and qualitative research methods and GIS techniques, the hypothesis was confirmed that high-rise buildings are found in diverse urban zones, but their location is not a direct factor exacerbating the negative effects of spatial urbanization of European cities. Based on comparative analyses of 20 European cities, it was indicated that high-rise buildings in cities are located according to very ambiguous spatial patterns, i.e. both centrally and peripherally, but also in different arrangements – clustered, striped and point-like. Moreover, the analysis of land use changes also confirmed that high-rise buildings are mainly built in areas of so-called brownfields, and promote urban land reclamation (selected graphics in the appendices).
Almost simultaneously with the announcement of the results of the ministerial competition, the researcher received a positive decision on his application to the MINIATURA7 competition, organized by the National Science Centre.
“In the coming year I will stay within the theme of my doctoral dissertation, and I will focus my research on hybrid spatial arrangements of high-rise buildings in the Central and Eastern European region” – dr Kryczka announces. “The topic of locating high-rise buildings in cities is extremely exciting, and there are still many unexplored threads. I hope that the next few years will allow me to take on new challenges in this area”.
Congratulations on your award and your passion for science!
Compiled by K.G.
Translated by Martyna Mielczarek (student of English Studies at the University of Wrocław) as part of the translation practice.
