Welcome to Wielkopolska

Major Eastern European transportation routes cross in the Wielkopolska region, which is the second largest province in Poland,  covering an area of 29.825 sq. m, roughly the size of Belgium. This lowland formed by a Scandinavian glacier provides lots of opportunities for recreation, its major attraction being the lakes of the Wielkopolskie and Pomorskie Lakeland. On one of these, Lake Lednickie, Polish Prince Mieszko I was baptized over a thousand years ago. By this symbolic act, the Prince introduced Polish State to western culture.
 If you decide to visit the lake, on your way you should stop at the open-air museum in Pobiedziska. At the museum you will see 1:20 scale miniatures of 30 historic structures in the Wielkopolska region. After seeing a model of the castle in Gołuchów, north of Kalisz, you will realize that visiting the structure built in the French Renaissance style is a must. The open air museum is a great starting point for a journey across this land, where you can see natural wonders, such as pears in willow trees, or more exactly a willow-leaf pear from the Caucasus, at the dendrology institute in Kórnik, near Poznań.

 Poznań is the capital of the region and a scientific center for western Poland. Its Adam Mic-kiewicz University provides education to 35,000 students. The Technical University in Poznań is the first Polish school to become a member of an elite association affiliating the best technical universities in Europe. Moreover, the graduates of the University of Economics are highly valued at the job market.  Poznań is famous for being a leading banking and financial center. In this city with a population of 600,000, there are 350 bank outlets (including branches and agencies).  Poznań International Fair plays a special role in the economic development of the city. In order to facilitate access to the city, this fall the second largest airport after the Okęcie in Warsaw will be opened in Poznań. This enterprise constitutes one of the priorities of the Strategy for the Development of Wielkopolskie Province, that is the expansion and modernization of the regional transportation and logistics network.  Provincial authorities want to create an image of Poznań as a leading urban center of importance to Europe.

 However, the Wielkopolskie Province consists not only of Poznań and its neighboring areas, but also of cities that play the role of sub-regional capitals. Kalisz is one of the oldest cities in Poland, famous for its Theater Festival staged in the local, picturesquely located W. Bogusławski's Theater. Konin is a large energy production center. It produces energy from lignite that is mined locally (28% of national output). Piła is a major rail junction, and Leszno is famous for gliding, although it is in fact the capital of a region with a high crop culture. It should be stressed that highly efficient agriculture (two-thirds of the province's area is covered with farmland) constitutes the major source of wealth of the Wielkopolska region, which is the producer of wholesome food. In order to intensify agricultural production and create farms that are capable of cooperating and competing with farms in Western Europe, comprehensive development of rural areas in terms of infrastructure and agricultural environment is being planned. However, it should be emphasized that the majority of farms in Wielkopolska produce a volume of crops that is comparable to that in the West. Thanks to increasingly close cooperation with its partner regions across Europe, Wielkopolska is rapidly approaching Western Europe. This cooperation ranges from sports and cultural events and joint projects regarding environmental protection, social and health care, to fast expanding cooperation in terms of science, technology, and the economy. These activities help the foreign partners to become acquainted with the potential of Wielkopolska, a region that is an attractive partner in a united Europe.

Anna Zatorska