DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND SPATIAL PLANNING
The head of Department:
Ing. Ľubomír Jamečný, PhD.
e-mail: lubomir.jamecnyfm.uniba.sk
Scientific Secretary of the Department
Mgr. Silvia Ondrejičková, PhD.
e-mail: silvia.ondrejickovafm.uniba.sk
Administration Office:
Ing. Ondrej Vozár
phone.: +421 2 9021 2018
e-mail: ondrej.vozarfm.uniba.sk
Full-time Staff:
Prof. Ing. arch. Maroš Finka, PhD.
Assoc. Prof. RNDr. Eva Pauditšová, PhD.
Assoc. Prof. Ing. Vladimír Ondrejička, PhD.
Assoc. Prof. Ing. Milan Husár, PhD.
Assoc. Prof. Mgr. Matej Jaššo, PhD.
Assoc. Prof. Ing. Nataliia Yehorchenkova, PhD.
Assoc. Prof. Ing. Oleksii Yehorchenkov, DrSc.
Ing. Sandra Lamy Schwarz, PhD.
Ing.arch. Zuzana Ladzianska, PhD.
Profile of the Department Environmental Management and Spatial Planning
The Department of Environmental Management and Spatial Planning is an academic, research, and training unit of the Faculty specializing in environmental management and spatial planning—a field that integrates strategic socio-economic planning, landscape and territorial planning, and project management for the development of municipalities, cities, and regions. The Department plays a pivotal role not only in educating spatial planning professionals but also in strengthening the environmental and spatial dimensions of management—particularly regarding innovation-oriented economic ecosystems—as well as in research, development, and the transfer of knowledge and innovations into practice at both domestic and international levels. It also facilitates the mutual exchange of knowledge between spatial planning and related disciplines within the Faculty of Management and the University.
Educational Activities
The Department addresses pressing practical needs—including new legislation on territorial planning and spatial development—by offering study programs across all three levels of higher education in the field of Spatial Planning. It provides flexible programs that respond to the latest developments, including the use of information and communication technologies and artificial intelligence, through undergraduate and postgraduate education, as well as micro-credential courses in territorial, landscape, and strategic planning, and in project and facility management. In cooperation with Matej Bel University (UMB) in Banská Bystrica, the Department is developing joint study programs that integrate the resources of both institutions in the fields of economics, management, and spatial planning, with a specific focus on smart management and the planning of municipalities and cities.
Through its educational activities, the Department prepares graduates for a wide range of roles in public administration, the business sector, and academia within the field of spatial development—including spatial planning, which is a regulated profession under Act No. 200/2022 Coll. on Spatial Planning. All educational programs and courses are interdisciplinary, integrating social, economic, natural, and technical sciences; at all levels of study, they allow for individual graduate profiling through elective tracks comprising sets of subjects focused on specific issues and current challenges in spatial planning. The educational activities of KEMPP are grounded in fostering creativity and the ability to offer innovative solutions to practical demands; consequently, they are based on project-based work that integrates the knowledge acquired. Students gain the knowledge and skills necessary to successfully perform roles as coordinators, mediators, and managers of participatory processes—facilitating co-creation, joint decision-making, conflict resolution, and the transfer and presentation of innovations. These educational activities foster a comprehensive yet individualized professional profile for planners and managers.
Scientific and Research Activities
The research and development activities of the Department’s staff are conducted primarily within the framework of the EU SPECTRA Centre of Excellence—an international, inter-university unit of the Faculty specializing in spatial planning. Research and development efforts focus on the integrated management of spatial development, aiming to achieve the goals of smart sustainable development. These activities address current challenges associated with global changes—such as climate change, the transition toward a knowledge-based economy and society, the energy transition, and demographic shifts—as well as the need to enhance the operational efficiency and resilience of municipalities, cities, and regions, improve access to quality of life, and foster social equity and justice. The KEMPP team’s research is supported by international projects under the Interreg and Horizon Europe schemes, as well as the Recovery and Resilience Plan; these projects cover a wide range of topics, all united by the overarching theme of smart sustainable spatial development. The focus is primarily on the following research topics:
• Management and planning of sustainable development for municipalities, cities, and regions
• Theory and methodology of spatial and environmental planning and management
• Climate change prevention, mitigation, compensation, and adaptation
• Smart development of municipalities, cities, and regions
• Innovation-oriented territorial ecosystems within the knowledge-based economy
• Sustainable smart mobility and energy systems
• Ecosystem services, and nature-oriented or nature-based innovations
• Strategic planning for territorial entities in the context of current challenges
• Spatial implications of Agenda 2030
• The New European Bauhaus
• Development, sustainable use, and management of territorial capital
• Cultural assets and their role in the transformation processes of cities and municipalities
• Spatial aspects of social and economic transformation, digitalization, and robotization
• Revitalization of distressed or affected areas
• Project management in the spatial development of cities and municipalities
• Innovations in education regarding spatial planning and environmental management
• Use of AI and other innovative tools in spatial development planning and management
• Smart governance for municipalities and cities
In line with the aforementioned priorities, the KEMPP team has implemented—within the EU SPECTRA Centre of Excellence—more than ten projects under the EU Framework Programme and Horizon, over 40 Interreg programme projects, and numerous projects funded by other international and domestic support schemes. Examples include the ongoing Horizon project STARTUP and the Interreg projects 2CFIMH and CICADA4CE.
Profile Department of Environmental Management and Spatial Planning
The Department of Environmental Management and Spatial Planning is an academic, research, and training unit of the Faculty specializing in environmental management and spatial planning—a field that integrates strategic socio-economic planning, landscape and territorial planning, and project management for the development of municipalities, cities, and regions. The Department plays a pivotal role not only in educating spatial planning professionals but also in strengthening the environmental and spatial dimensions of management—particularly regarding innovation-oriented economic ecosystems—as well as in research, development, and the transfer of knowledge and innovations into practice at both domestic and international levels. It also facilitates the mutual exchange of knowledge between spatial planning and related disciplines within the Faculty of Management and the University.
Educational Activities
The Department addresses pressing practical needs—including new legislation on territorial planning and spatial development—by offering study programs across all three levels of higher education in the field of Spatial Planning. It provides flexible programs that respond to the latest developments, including the use of information and communication technologies and artificial intelligence, through undergraduate and postgraduate education, as well as micro-credential courses in territorial, landscape, and strategic planning, and in project and facility management. In cooperation with Matej Bel University (UMB) in Banská Bystrica, the Department is developing joint study programs that integrate the resources of both institutions in the fields of economics, management, and spatial planning, with a specific focus on smart management and the planning of municipalities and cities.
Through its educational activities, the Department prepares graduates for a wide range of roles in public administration, the business sector, and academia within the field of spatial development—including spatial planning, which is a regulated profession under Act No. 200/2022 Coll. on Spatial Planning. All educational programs and courses are interdisciplinary, integrating social, economic, natural, and technical sciences; at all levels of study, they allow for individual graduate profiling through elective tracks comprising sets of subjects focused on specific issues and current challenges in spatial planning. The educational activities of KEMPP are grounded in fostering creativity and the ability to offer innovative solutions to practical demands; consequently, they are based on project-based work that integrates the knowledge acquired. Students gain the knowledge and skills necessary to successfully perform roles as coordinators, mediators, and managers of participatory processes—facilitating co-creation, joint decision-making, conflict resolution, and the transfer and presentation of innovations. These educational activities foster a comprehensive yet individualized professional profile for planners and managers.
Scientific and Research Activities
The research and development activities of the Department’s staff are conducted primarily within the framework of the EU SPECTRA Centre of Excellence—an international, inter-university unit of the Faculty specializing in spatial planning. Research and development efforts focus on the integrated management of spatial development, aiming to achieve the goals of smart sustainable development. These activities address current challenges associated with global changes—such as climate change, the transition toward a knowledge-based economy and society, the energy transition, and demographic shifts—as well as the need to enhance the operational efficiency and resilience of municipalities, cities, and regions, improve access to quality of life, and foster social equity and justice. The KEMPP team’s research is supported by international projects under the Interreg and Horizon Europe schemes, as well as the Recovery and Resilience Plan; these projects cover a wide range of topics, all united by the overarching theme of smart sustainable spatial development. The focus is primarily on the following research topics:
• Management and planning of sustainable development for municipalities, cities, and regions
• Theory and methodology of spatial and environmental planning and management
• Climate change prevention, mitigation, compensation, and adaptation
• Smart development of municipalities, cities, and regions
• Innovation-oriented territorial ecosystems within the knowledge-based economy
• Sustainable smart mobility and energy systems
• Ecosystem services, and nature-oriented or nature-based innovations
• Strategic planning for territorial entities in the context of current challenges
• Spatial implications of Agenda 2030
• The New European Bauhaus
• Development, sustainable use, and management of territorial capital
• Cultural assets and their role in the transformation processes of cities and municipalities
• Spatial aspects of social and economic transformation, digitalization, and robotization
• Revitalization of distressed or affected areas
• Project management in the spatial development of cities and municipalities
• Innovations in education regarding spatial planning and environmental management
• Use of AI and other innovative tools in spatial development planning and management
• Smart governance for municipalities and cities
In line with the aforementioned priorities, the KEMPP team has implemented—within the EU SPECTRA Centre of Excellence—more than ten projects under the EU Framework Programme and Horizon, over 40 Interreg programme projects, and numerous projects funded by other international and domestic support schemes. Examples include the ongoing Horizon project STARTUP and the Interreg projects 2CFIMH and CICADA4CE.