The people who make up the Greenways Poland Association include:
MANAGEMENT BOARD:
Dominika Zaręba / president / Freelance columnist, author of books and tour guides. Her educational background is in economics. A promoter of eco-travel and author of the first Polish language publication on ecotourism („Ekoturystyka”, Polish Scientific Publishers, Warszawa 2010, 3rd ed.) as well as the „Concept for promoting and developing ecotourism in Poland” (Polish Tourist Organisation). Co-founder of the Bezdroża Publishing House. Dominika Zaręba laid the foundations for the greenways program in Poland for the Polish Environmental Partnership Foundation, and contributed to the creation of greenway networks across Central Europe. She also launched greenway trails in Belarus. Dominika is a member of the advisory board of the Partnership Fund and an international expert of the Environmental Partnership Association which brings together six foundations running programs in Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria. She works closely with several organizations promoting sustainable tourism around the world. Dominika writes extensively about eco-travel on www.atitlan.pl and has a passion for photography and travel.
Zbigniew Pacholik / Local partnership coach, community empowerment trainer, tour guide, a sociologist by education. Zbigniew Pacholik is co-founder and current head of the „Green Ring” Local Action Group in the Lublin Voivodship. Zbigniew brings many years of experience working for local government in a number of capacities. He is the co-creator of the Bicycle Land on the Amber Trail Greenway in the Lublin region, as well as initiator and author of many partnership projects focused on local development. He acts as a mentor and coach for start-up businesses offering local and traditonal products. Member of the Management Board of the “Greenways Poland” Association.
Anna Woźniak-Lubaś / Member of the Management Board of the “Greenways Poland” Association.
AUDIT COMMITTEE:
Krzysztof Pucek / chair
Bogdan Kasperek
Edward Kutyła
OUR MEMBERS AND EXPERTS:
Karolina Likhtarovich / sociologist, graduate of certificate studies program in local development at Warsaw University and tourism and agrotourism at the Warsaw University of Life Sciences, and has lectured at universities in Poland and abroad. Karolina has been actively engaged in empowering local communities in a variety of capacities. She authored a strategy for developing tourism focused on local natural and cultural heritage, is an active questing instructor, has been involved in projects dedicated to heritage tourism, ecotourism, rural tourism and environmental education. An enthusiast of Podlasie and passionate about promoting local natural and cultural heritage in Central and Eastern Europe, Karolina is Deputy Head of the “Green Neighborhood” Local Action Group and the member of the City Council of Podkowa Leśna.
Dorota Sawa / Director of the Local Development Agency (Lublin branch) and the „Krasnystaw PLUS” Local Action Group. Dorota Sawa is the coordinator of activities connected with the establishment of the Lublin Non-Governmental Union, Rural Entrepreneurship Cluster and the Greenways trails, all under the “Heritage of the East” umbrella trademark. She is also the chair of the Advisory Committee to the Lublin Chamber of Regional and Local Products. A community broker, who cooperates with a number of NGOs and discussion groups, Dorota has been a keen advocate of developing local products and supporting entrepreneurship, and is furthermore an expert in European Structural Funds as well as NGO creation and management. She has an academic background in economics, obtained an MBA at the Lublin University of Technology and has a PhD degree from the Institute of Labour and Social Studies in Warsaw. An avid proponent of active tourism and discovering European countries from an insider’s perspective.
Bogusław Pyzocha / President of the Bieszczady Foundation, eco-tourism expert. Bogusław Pyzocha has initiated and led several major projects related to eco-tourism, local products and social enterprises in the Polish-Slovak-Ukraine borderland. He gained his professional experience in the Bieszczady Mountains region, where he lives. For Bogusław, ecotourism is a key driver of growth in the region and represents great potential, which needs to be reinforced. He has advised and trained local leaders from other regions of Poland and abroad. The most important initiatives of the Bieszczady Foundation which he helped create and where he is actively involved are: 1) Green Bicycle – Eastern Carpathian Greenway, an international natural and cultural heritage bike trail established in 2004, and inspired by the ‘greenway’ concept 2) Carpathian Eco-museums, set up in 2005, which center on the protection of natural and cultural heritage assets by creating locally made eco-tourist products and promoting local goods 3) EcoTravel Agency “Green Bicycle”, which since 2006 has made it its mission to prepare and coordinate trips into various corners of the Eastern Carpathians 4) GoToCarpathia certification system (since 2010)– certifications awarded for high quality locally sourced goods and ecotourism services 5) Green Bieszczady Partnership Group Fund is a financial mechanism for supporting small and local initiatives.
Marek Romaniec / Local partnership coach, political scientist. Chair of the Management Board of the Necklace of the North Foundation. Certified Trainer of the Assocation of Trainers of NGOs. Community empowerment trainer. Co-founder of the Necklace of the North Greenway bike trail and associated programs: Local Trademark, Ecomuseum, Questing. Author of toruism development strategy as well as local development strategy. Author and manager of the Wielkopolska Academy of Local Government Leaders. Panelist at many national and international conferences on tri-sector sustainable development of rural areas.
Przemysław Ołdakowski /tri-sector local partnership coach – founder of the Green Bieszczady Partnership Group (1999) and the Bieszczady Local Action Group (2006), co-founder and manager of the Bieszczady Foundation (2002-2007). A member of the Advisory Board of the Bieszczady Foundation. An expert in sustainable tourism, Przemysław originated the idea of the „Green Bicycle” natural and cultural heritage trail and has been for many years the coordinator of the international Eastern Carpathian Greenway covering Poland, Slovakia and Ukraine. Trainer, tutor and instructor on sustainable tourism and local development (1999-2013), advisor and guide for social enterprises (20013 -2014). Przemysław has furthermore spearheaded many initiatives, projects as well as solutions connected to empowering and building strong, vibrant local communities and promoting environmentally friendly tourism and locally sourced goods and products. An experienced practitioner and expert in the sustainable development of rural areas, Przemysław has co-authored several local development strategies in the municipalities of the Bieszczady region.
