RESEARCH

I research historical and contemporary land use in mountain glades that are subject to land abandonment in the Silesian, Żywiec-Kysuce and Żywiec-Orawa Beskids (Western Carpathians, Poland). In particular, I am interested in such issues as:

• the use of archival maps and aerial photography in the reconstruction of changes in land use, land cover and landscape,

• the use of contemporary cartographic materials in the reconstruction of historical land use and land cover in mid-forest glades,

• the detection of anthropogenic terrain forms connected with former agricultural activity based on airborne laser scanning and field studies,

• the reconstruction of historical land use and land cover based on anthropogenic terrain forms,

• the factors of land abandonment and secondary forest succession in mid-forest glades.

The results of my research are available in the publications listed on my Researchgate profile.

EDUCATION

I conduct lectures and seminars for students of geography and tourism in the Faculty of Natural Sciences of the University of Silesia, in subjects such as:

• Landscape geography,

• Historical analysis in landscape studies,

• ALS in landscape studies,

• Tourism in the Contemporary World,

• Geographic Information Systems in tourism,

• Fundamentals of geography in tourism,

• Methods of landscape studies.

I am a supervisor of bachelor's theses for students of geography, and I conduct a master's computer lab for students of tourism. The proposed topics for the master's theses are related to the monitoring of landscape changes and include:

• Changes in land use/landscape in the example of a selected study area in the Silesian and Żywiecki Beskid,

• Analysis of viewsheds from viewpoints chosen to assess landscape attractiveness (the Western Carpathians),

• Determinants of land use in a selected study area in the Silesian and Żywiecki Beskid,

• Application of the digital terrain model in landscape analysis in the example of a selected study area in the Silesian and Żywiecki Beskid.

I also share my knowledge and experience through training on the landscape audit procedure. I was one of the speakers at the Polish Nationwide Workshop of Regional Planning Services "Landscape Audit - problems and possibilities of implementation". As an expert, I also participated in a study tour concerning spatial and landscape planning in Germany and the Czech Republic.

COOPERATION

I am a member of the Cultural Landscape Commission of the Polish Geographical Society. As a member, I participate in organizing academic conferences, and I participate in regular members’ meetings. I am a member of the Editorial Board of the journal "Dissertation of Cultural Landscape Commission".

I cooperate with the Silesian Landscape Parks (Zespół Parków Krajobrazowych Województwa Śląskiego), for which I prepare popular scientific articles concerning my research conducted in the Silesian Beskid Landscape Park and Żywiecki Landscape Park. I am the author of several chapters in the "Handbook of good pastoral practices" and the co-author of the album "The rocky world of the Silesian Beskid Landscape Park".

In 2014-2015 I contributed to the work of the Carpathian Working Group on Spatial Planning. This group was established within a project entitled "Carpathians Unite – Mechanism of Consultation and Cooperation for Implementation of the Carpathian Convention". The result of the Working Group's activity was the development of the "Code of Good Practice in Shaping the Carpathian Space".

In 2015 I participated in the testing of the methodology of landscape identification and assessment developed to prepare landscape audits for voivodeships in Poland. The resulting report was used to establish the Regulation of the Cabinet of Ministers of 11 January 2019 on landscape audits.

In 2017 I was involved in work on "The Route of the Wallachian Culture". I prepared a report on natural heritage related to pastoral culture in the Carpathians within the Silesian Voivodeship that was used in the creation of the route.

You can read more about my activity on my Facebook profile.

If you are interested in cooperating with me, please get in contact.

CONTACT

Michał Sobala

Institute of Earth Sciences

Faculty of Natural Sciences

University of Silesia

60 Będzińska str.

41-200 Sosnowiec

michal.sobala@us.edu.pl

phone no. +48 531-144-867

Photo DW FILM