Forgotten cultural heritage as a development factor of rural areas: The study of the Wągrowiec commune

Abstract

The aim of the article is to analyze the forgotten and devoid of significant artifacts cultural heritage of the Wągrowiec commune, as well as to present the ideas of revitalizing it and making it more attractive. The study focuses primarily on the heritage related to the Cistercian order and the Pałuki family, and its spatial scope is limited to the area of Łekno, Tarnowo Pałuckie and Bracholin, as well as to the ribbon of Gołańcz–Wągrowiec lakes.

The research was part of the project “Learning by doing: Involving students in work for local government units”, carried out by the students and researchers of the Faculty of Human Geography and Planning of the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań in cooperation with the commune of Wągrowiec.

Conclusions resulting from the conducted research can be formulated from the point of view of three perspectives: 1) scientific-cognitive, 2) didactic and 3) practical. From the scientific-cognitive perspective, the need for a place-based development policy has been confirmed. In terms of didactics, students had the opportunity to take part in the discussions and undertake planning activities in the non-standard conditions of a typical peripheral area characterized by a complete transport exclusion, which was a valuable experience. Finally, considering the practical perspective, it has been proven that it is necessary to integrate development planning in the sectoral dimension (e.g. by combining various resources into tourist products) and the territorial one (in particular, the need for cooperation between local governments).