As part of my Ph.D. research, I am doing a case study on an area of Służewiec, also locally referred to as ‘Mordor’. My approach and field work includes a series of ‘Walking Labs’, organized walks that include a mix of experts, stakeholders, residents and researchers.
Here you will find information for joining upcoming walks, surveys for those who have completed the walk & a survey for locals living & working in the area. Please feel free to email me if you are interested in this work or have any questions.
-Annika (info@pedestrianspace.org)
WALKING LAB SURVEY
Survey for those who have participated in the walk here
15-MINUTE CITY SURVEY
15-minute city survey with focus on Służewiec here
December 3, 2023 at 11 am : Służewiec Walking Lab, coordinated by Pedestrian Space & Dom Kultury KADR with a focus on the Prototype Housing Estate (Osiedle Prototypów).
Please sign up on the mailing list here if you would like to be notified about upcoming walks in Mordor & Służewiec-related activities
On October 27 , 2023, in collaboration with Dom Kultury KADR, I hosted a 15-minute city workshop with a group of local senior residents who meet weekly at this center . The cultural center where I was hosting the workshop is part of my case study area where I am exploring the concept as manifest at the neighborhood level.
None of the workshop participants had heard about the concept before but after I explained it they nodded. ‘That’s what we have right here’, they said, referring to their neighborhood.
Read a bit more here on the workshop.
October 1, 2023 Walking Lab
This was the final walk in a series of walking lab experiences I’ve co-created with Jakub Kompa of Lepszy Służewiec who has expertly led the walks over the last several months.
The walk began at Marynarska Business Park where architect Maciej Jakub Zawadzki will give us a tour of his studio’s project transforming a 6000 square meter parking lot into an area of green hills, native trees & vegetation (parking moved into the underground)- the whole area being renamed Diuna.
“Diuna’s patio was designed in accordance with the biophilic design concept, which assumes that humans have an innate tendency to seek connections with nature & belonging to the natural world.” -Maciej Jakub Zawadzki, MJZstudio
“Diuna changes the business face of Służewiec and sets a new direction in which office buildings must follow to be an attractive space for investors, tenants and the local community. (…) The most important works have been completed, including: with the creation of a new, publicly accessible park, which will be the showcase of the entire complex.” -says Witold Zatoński, founder of Syrena Real Estate. (source: https://www.bryla.pl/diuna-metamorfoza-kompleksu-biurowego-marynarska-business-park-w-warszawie)
After touring Diuna, we walked through ‘Mordor’, led by Jakub Kompa, whose in-depth knowledge of the area via his work with Lepszy Służewiec lends to an incredible informative mobile experience, learning about this formerly (and infamously) monofunctional business district which has been (and is being) transformed into a more livable urban quarter – a 15-minute city neighborhood in fact.
Pedestrian Space is the umbrella organizer for the #MordorWalkingLab, which is also featured in my dissertation research as Służewiec is my case study area, where I also have a 15-minute city survey deployed & have been busy interviewing a range of local stakeholders.
This was a very international walk as we also had a Walkability Retreat that weekend with members of GWCN: Global Walkability Correspondents Network, who also participated in the experience alongside locals.
Mordor Walking Labs held between May 2023 & October 2023 are a collaboration between Lepszy Służewiec & Pedestrian Space
View video about Mordor Sunday Socials here
Pedestrian Space in collaboration Six Seasons Distillery and @Lepszy Służewiec will be kicking off a series of Summer Sunday Socials- beginning Sunday July 2nd!
Sunday Socials at Six Seasons Distillery will include opportunities for family dinner, happy hour, mingling with fellow locals and also taking part in some engaging activities related to local life in #Służewiec.
Read more about the Mordor Walking Lab II on LinkedIn here
MAY 31, 2023 PILOT WALK
We hosted our 1st ‘Służewiec a.k.a. Mordor Walking Lab’ on May 31, 2023. This was a pilot walk in what will be a series of walks in the area. We collectively moved through different parts of the neighborhood, observing aspects of development, potentials, livability, as well as best practices and barriers in local walkability.
You can see some glimpses of the walk in this short video here:
The pilot walk was fantastic to test the route as well as see the responses of Walking Lab participants. On this walk we had a local stakeholder, a local professor and expert on sustainable development, a resident of the city passionate about urban issues and a visiting transport planner from California. The mix of professions in the group added to the observations and exchanges as we moved through the neighborhood.
If you are interested in participating in these walks or live and work in the area and would like to participate in an interview, please contact info@pedestrianspace.org