The author presents the search for the identity of individuals and families displaced after World War II from Vilnius to Gdańsk in the context of the urban community integration. Gdańsk being a city where the population after the war was almost fully replaced, becomes in this sense a kind of laboratory of social integration processes. The text serves as an introduction to the topic and is based on the results of the pilot qualitative research conducted within the The Common Room Gdańsk” (2013–2015) project coordinated by prof. M. Mendel. The analyses are a contribution to the reflection on identity determinants of integration processes within the urban community, also in relation to contemporary times. When discussing the issues of identity, the author points to the importance of the turning point which was the end of World War II, and the experience of expatriation in the spatial and socio-cultural context.
This article discusses the professional careers of foreign scholars in Krakow, one of the leading academic centres in Poland and a regional ‘silicon valley’ (toutes proportions gardées). Central and Eastern Europe is understudied as an immigration region for highly skilled migrants (HSMs). To bridge this gap, we concentrate on three interrelated topics: (a) the perception of Polish science and its infrastruc-ture; (b) careers of international staff employed in Polish academia; and (c) their perception of their achievements in Poland. Foreign scholars come to Poland for various reasons. Two of the most important are the cultural proximity between Poland and their country of origin, and research interests focused directly in Poland. Our findings show that Poland attracts first and foremost scholars with average scientific achievements. We discuss major problems they encounter (e.g., shortage of funds, uncomfortable office space, restricted access to books and papers) and their expectations of life in a semi-periphery country. The paper is mainly based on in-depth interviews with 23 foreign scholars working full time at four universities in Krakow and, as a secondary source, on the analysis of websites of these universities.
This article presents the last decade of the Krystyna Cywińska’s journalism, published in the London Nowy Czas [ The New Time] in 2007– 2017. Her journalistic career began in London in 1947: she was a regular contributor to Radio Free Europe, the BBC, the London Dziennik Polski i Dziennik Żołnierza [ The Polish Daily and Soldier’s Daily] and its Sunday supplement Tydzień Polski [ The Polish Weekly]. In the course of fifty years she developed a distinctly personal style of commenting on the social and political realities of the day, especially those affected the lives of the Polish expatriates.