Venue
The University of Warsaw
Old Library
This is an iconic building of the University of Warsaw: initially built in 1894, at the beginning of the 21st century it was fully renovated into a modern lecture and conference centre. [During World War II, Czesław Miłosz, the 1980 Nobel laureate in Literature, worked here as a janitor.] We will meet here for the Opening Ceremony.
The majority of the symposium will be hosted here, in the Old library.
The University of Warsaw
New Library
European Geological Education Center in Chęciny (ECEG)
ECEG is the University of Warsaw’s geologic field center, built within an abandoned Devonian dolomite quarry in the medieval town of Chęciny, in the heart of the Gòry Świętokrzyskie (the Holy Cross Mountains). With state-of-the-art geological laboratories, lecture rooms, hotel accommodations, and all of the other facilities that may be useful for comfortable field work, it is a perfect place to carry out student field camps and geologic research. ECEG will serve as the base for some of our field trips, and host many of the pre- and post-conference workshops.
The new University of Warsaw Library is a building of surprising diversity, fusing the functionality of a modern library with the atmosphere of an old town. Abutting the Vistula embankment, it encapsulates European culture while retaining a distinct Mazovian heritage.
The interior of the building is stunning, centered around a three-story monumental ‘Passage’ leading to the library itself, and open spaces connecting reading halls, resting places, and the books themselves. Our lecture halls directly face rows of bookshelves containing massive collections of books and magazines from around the world. There are also numerous shops, cafes, and art galleries on the library premises.
The roof of the library hosts one of the largest, most beautiful rooftop gardens in Europe, and is an attractive resting place for students and tourists alike. From the roof, visitors can admire both the Varsovian skyline and the Vistula River. The garden is immersed in a profusion of vibrant plants: yellow, pink, red and orange flowering shrubs, silver-leaved willows, white blooming Dasiphora fruticosa, and dwarf pines, among many others. The walkways, paths, bridges, and pergolas traversing the garden are hidden within an assortment of vines and climbing hydrangea, providing a scene of solitude and nature within the bustling University of Warsaw campus.
