The editors of Town Planning Review (TPR) have selected the following paper as the Featured Article in TPR 95.6

It is available to read Open Access as part of LUP Open Planning:

From the conflict border: urban response to the refugee crisis in Poland resulting from the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, by Daniel Baldwin Hess.

When asked to describe the paper and highlight its importance, the author stated the following:

Russian forces unprovokedly invaded Ukraine in February 2022, launching a worldwide crisis with global impacts. This invasion signaled a clear escalation in Russia’s decade-long aggression toward Ukraine. An estimated 13 million Ukrainians were immediately forced from their homes as they fled for safety. Some Ukrainians sought refuge within Ukraine and others traveled abroad. Poland, which shares its westerly border with Ukraine, was frequently a destination for war migrants. Poland and Ukraine have long-established cultural ties, and Poland had become home to many Ukrainian employment migrants since the 2014 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Using the hostile Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 as a backdrop, this article explores the response in the cities of Poland to the humanitarian crisis, during which some Ukrainians transited through Poland to other countries while other Ukrainians set up residence in Poland temporarily or permanently. The article focuses on Kraków, a key urban center in southern Poland, through which 800,000 Ukrainians are estimated to have transited and in which 130,000 Ukrainians sought refuge in shelters or private housing. 

Cities are often at the center of societal crises, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine demonstrated the power of Polish cities in welcoming migrants, providing residential space, supporting livelihoods, nurturing children and families, and supporting individual growth and development. The extraordinary generosity of Polish people and organizations—through donating time and resources and volunteerism—helped to ensure the successes achieved during the migrancy period since 2022.

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