Projects / Programmes
January 1, 2009
- December 31, 2014
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 6.12.00 |
Humanities |
Geography |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| S230 |
Social sciences |
Social geography |
| P510 |
Natural sciences and mathematics |
Physical geography, geomorphology, pedology, cartography, climatology |
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| 6.05 |
Humanities |
Other humanities |
Slovenia, Geography, Physical Geography, Human Geography, Regional Geography, Urban Geography, Regional Development, Geographic Information System, Cartography, Natural Desasters, Geographical Names
Researchers (30)
Organisations (1)
Abstract
The research programme “Geography of Slovenia” is a continuation of the joint research programmes Regional geography of Slovenia and Social geography of Slovenia. It encompasses basic analysis and synthetic research work about Slovenia, its landscape components and regional units, geographic comparative studies, development of geographic terminology including geographical names and furthermore the development of geographical methods, techniques and the geographic information system, including thematic cartography.
Geography is important for many spatial and other sciences since its understanding of landscapes, their characteristics and their principles offers basic knowledge for research in certain scientific fields as well as for expert, political and particularly developmental decisions. Its presence is furthermore valuable in the education system as it is an interesting subject in primary and secondary schools. However it is important for the general educational level of citizens as well since it helps to better understand regional, political, economic, social, religious, cultural and other problems in Slovenia and the rest of the World.
The predominant element in Slovene geography is complexity and it’s ideal implementation would be the (regional) geography of Slovenia. In the past few years there has been a raising interest for “United Geography”, particularly in english, german and french geographical litterature. Several debates are associated with the expression “New Regional Geography” and/or “École de la régulation”. Modern geography teaches natural and human landscape structures, processes and spatial social-group behaviour. Besides the complexity and interconnectivity of geographic features and processes it further considers the effects of economic progress, technological innovations, economic integrations, globalization, cultural identity and the effects the physical environment has on the landscape.
The research programme is of fundamental and national importance since it is the sole scientific discipline that studies Slovenia in a complex and geographic approach, its regional units and the interaction between components that make up Slovene landscapes (rock, surface, water, climate, soil, flora, fauna, population, settlements, economy etc.). This diversity of Slovene landscapes is one of the country’s biggest treasures.
“Geography of Slovenia” is a multidisciplinary project combining results of related sciences into a new synthetic scientific whole. Furthermore it is important for education as it facilitates understanding of regional, political, economic, cultural and other principles at home and elsewhere. The starting point of the research programme is mainly a systematic evaluation and formation of an environmentally friendly spatial management, based on standardized evaluation procedures, equivalently considering natural and social landscape components. One of the aims is the setting up of theoretical and practical models of a coherent regional development and wise land use. It will be founded on modern comprehension of the limits of natural resources and human and economic potentials. On a theorethical and model-based level the programme will illustrate the opposing development-concepts of globalization and regionalization which are related with a balanced competition, economic and social interaction and protection of natural resources.
The programme deals with the research of natural and social components of Slovenia and its landscapes with particular emphasis on their interaction and their importance for the formation and development of Slovene regions. The focus is therefore on the research of those particular geographic features which combine natural and human factors, e.g. natural disasters, land use, environmental problems, cultural landscapes, environmentally friendly development and research of modern social problems, e.g. in agriculture, population, social welfare, urbanization, national i
Significance for science
Geographical studies of Slovenia based on the latest available methods are important both on European and global levels, since Slovenia may be termed as a geographical laboratory due to its diversity. This programme was designed to produce new knowledge and improve our understanding of Slovenia's geographical characteristics and thus promote the application of the latest research methods in geography in order to strengthen and encourage interactions between human and physical geography and help implement modern approaches to geography. The programme provided new knowledge by: - adding to our understanding of Slovenian landscapes as one of the country's most important natural resources, - identifying the key natural elements forming Slovenian landscapes, - building up on our understanding of processes in the complex system of landscapes and their quantification, - specifying the key socio-economic processes that are important for the understanding of landscape functions in Slovenia, with particular emphasis on regional planning, - determining locations in Slovenia where maximum frequency of natural hazards should be expected, - determining appropriate land use for individual parts of Slovenia in relation to other landscape components, - defining the importance of protected areas with less modified natural landscape for research work, - upgrading our knowledge of the laws of interaction among the natural components of landscapes, - collecting, evaluating and verifying the quality of data related to relief, lithology, climate, water, pedology and vegetation in Slovenia, - transforming programme results, e.g. thematic maps, into applicable scientific resources for further research in this area. In addition, our work contributed to the development of methodology in geography by developing and promoting quantitative methods (geographic information systems, statistical methods, machine learning) and evaluation in order to: - improve, expand and upgrade the methods of analyzing the main content categories, - promote a scientific debate on essential topics from geography and geographical methodology, terminology and concrete results provided by this programme, - implement new geographical methodological solutions and models, - use innovative applications of geographic information systems, thus providing for the visualization and public availability of results, - strengthen the importance of field work as the key factor for verifying the results of quantitative analyses and - contribute to a better presentation of Slovenia's geographical characteristics abroad. The results of this programme are important for geography and related sciences in basic and applied areas as well as in tourism, regional planning, preservation of rural areas, agriculture and population, planning of effective land use, landscape ecology, preservation of natural and cultural heritage, and for solving regional conflicts and other political decisions. Thus, the Geography of Slovenia programme promoted the principle of humanity and contributed to increased tolerance among people, both in Slovenia and abroad.
Significance for the country
Geography is crucial for social development because it is based on a comprehensive understanding of spatial, regional, political, historical, economical, cultural and other laws of landscape. The results of this programme are important for spatial sciences as well as for professional, development-oriented and related institutions responsible for national development. In the light of the general crisis, the development of the Republic of Slovenia so far has shown the need for new forms of spatial organization of landscape in the near future. The fundamental research done by the program research group pointed to the importance of (1) taking into consideration the development of the digital world that was largely undreamed of until a few years ago and that allows for a different perception of space and promotes new activities, (2) spatial management and effective planning of land use, especially from the perspective of regional planning, traffic burdening space and protected areas, and (3) landscape management from the perspective of the increasing number and magnitude of "interactions" between natural and social processes related to natural hazards. This programme contributed to sustainable economy and promoted the strengthening of economic competitiveness and developing new production and service activities by enabling the construction of infrastructure and social systems to be channelled and safely integrated into space by means of various models. In addition, the results of this programme were beneficial in: - development and promotion of new tourist destinations, - registration of areas with a particular social or natural situation that demands a more detailed spatial planning or other special measures, and the establishment of national measures for a more effective management of landscapes and in protected areas, - coordination of economic development with regards to environmental restrictions and human interference with space (settlement, economy, traffic), - improved landscape management on all levels by establishing national and municipal measures for planning future development, - preparation of geographical and other textbooks on any education level, - implementation of new research methods and typologies into the geographical and related study programmes; - transforming the population's perception of the value of Slovenian landscapes as our national wealth and an important natural resource, and - protecting Slovenian natural and cultural heritage. The results of this program are available to other sciences for research purposes, to national public and private institutions and governing bodies both on the national and local level as a guideline for sounder decision-making related to various interventions into space, and to various organizations for promoting Slovenia as a country with exceptional landscape diversity.
Audiovisual sources (1)
Most important scientific results
Annual report
2009,
2010,
2011,
2012,
2013,
final report,
complete report on dLib.si
Most important socioeconomically and culturally relevant results
Annual report
2009,
2010,
2011,
2012,
2013,
final report,
complete report on dLib.si
