MARTA KLEKOTKO, PhD

Urban research & consultancy

I'm an independent urban researcher with one obsession: understanding what makes cities — and the communities living in them — truly thrive. For over two decades, I've chased the same question from every possible angle: what cultural mechanisms drive community empowerment, social cohesion, and urban development? My restless curiosity, love of complexity, and habit of picking holes in tidy theories gave me the drive to keep asking "why" long after most people stop. I believe culture and the arts aren't decoration on top of urban life — they're one of its most powerful engines of change. That belief sits at the core of everything I research, teach, and build. It also led me to found Urban Futures Lab — a think tank dedicated to shaping the future of cities.

About me 
& my approach

For over 20 years, I have worked in academia, combining research and teaching across diverse international contexts. During this time, I have developed a distinctive theoretical and methodological approach, built extensive research networks, and gained broad academic experience, which I am always happy to share with others.  My academic profile builds on theoretical eclecticism, methodological triangulation, a strong cultural perspective and a sustained international orientation. It combines research and applied work dedicated to understanding and supporting urban and community development. I aim to connect rigorous academic inquiry with practical engagement, translating complex social, cultural and spatial dynamics into knowledge that can inform research, education, policy and local action. The summary below presents selected details of my academic background and activities. 

Research 
interests

My research focuses on community studies, urban sociology, and social development. I am particularly interested in how space, culture and everyday practices shape communities, local identities, urban change and sustainable development. Much of my work explores how cultural meanings, place-based practices and community dynamics can support — or sometimes hinder — more inclusive and sustainable urban futures.

Theoretical 
frameworks

My work is theoretically eclectic, but it is mainly grounded in cultural scenes theory and social practice theory. I use these frameworks to understand cities and communities not only as spatial or institutional arrangements, but as dynamic configurations of places, people, practices, meanings and values. This allows me to analyse how culture operates as a real force in social life, shaping opportunities, identities, conflicts and forms of collective action.

Methodological 
approach

I use mixed-methods research designs that combine qualitative, quantitative, spatial and participatory approaches. My methodological toolkit includes ethnography, research walks, focus groups, projective and creative techniques, GIS and spatial analysis, multivariate statistics, comparative research and policy analysis. I am especially interested in developing methods that make complex socio-spatial and cultural phenomena visible, measurable and useful for real-world decision-making.

International 
collaboration

International collaboration has always been central to my academic work. I have developed research networks across Europe, North America and Asia, particularly through the international Scenes Project network coordinated by prof. Terry N. Clark from the University of Chicago. International collaboration sits at the core of my agenda, as I consider it indispensable for rigorous comparative research. Working across countries, institutions and research traditions makes it possible to move beyond isolated case studies, develop stronger grounds for careful generalisation, and identify the nuances and context-specific dynamics of processes that may appear similar at first sight.

Service 

I currently serve as President of the Research Committee on Community Research (RC03) of the International Sociological Association. I also regularly contribute to the academic community as a peer reviewer for leading publishers, including Routledge and Palgrave Macmillan, and for a range of international journals such as Urban Studies, Space and Culture, and Sustainability. I see academic service as a way of building intellectual communities and creating spaces for collaboration. My work includes coordinating research networks, supporting collective publication initiatives, developing international partnerships and contributing to the organisation of academic events. I am especially committed to activities that connect scholars across countries, disciplines and career stages.

Academic 
background

I received my PhD is social sciences from the Jagiellonian University in Cracow (Poland) and since then have held academic positions at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow, and the University of Silesia in Katowice, combining research, teaching and institutional engagement. My international experience includes visiting fellowships at the University of Chicago, Universitat de Barcelona, Universidad Pablo de Olavide, SUNY Buffalo, the University of Sussex and the University of Brighton. Over the years, I have also developed my methodological and comparative skills through international trainings in GIS, cross-national analysis, rural and agrarian studies, and advanced academic teaching.

Research 
experience

My research experience combines theoretical development, empirical investigation and applied knowledge transfer. I have led or collaborated in numerous national and international research projects on urban communities, cultural scenes, sustainable development, social practices, local policies and community-based cultural dynamics. I aim to produce research that contributes to academic debates while also offering practical insights for cities, institutions, policymakers, NGOs and local communities..

Teaching
experience 

I have over twenty years of university-level teaching experience at undergraduate, graduate and doctoral levels. I have taught courses in urban sociology, community studies, development studies, macrosociology, social change, urban social movements, qualitative methodology and research design, many of them in English and in international classrooms. My teaching is based on critical thinking, curiosity, active learning and a close connection between theory, research and real-world problems.

Independent
scholarship

After the birth of my child, continuing a university position that required weekly international commuting became increasingly difficult to reconcile with family life. This experience led me to reorganize my work and choose a more independent research path.I have since started a new chapter as an independent researcher and founded Urban Futures Lab, a research and advisory practice focused on applied social research. This transition has allowed me to continue developing my academic agenda while working in a more flexible, applied and collaborative way. If you are considering a similar path into independent scholarship, feel free to contact me — I will be happy to share my experience.

My resea​rch 
(selected projects)

Cultural Mechanism 
of Urban Community Structuration

National Science Center (Poland)
Grant 2016/23/B/HS6/03891
2017-2023

Urban Scenes:
Arts and Culture in Urban Development

National Science Center (Poland)
Grant 2011/01/D/HS6/04057
2011 – 2015

In Search of Balance: Community Development 
in the Global Context 

Ministry of Science 
Grant N116/003/31/0267
2006 - 2009

My publications

Books
.



















Senes and Communities 
in the City

Marta Klekotko
Palgrave MacMillan 2024

Wymiary kulturowe polskich miast i miasteczek

Marta Klekotko & Clemente J. Navarro
Jagiellonian University Press 2015

Rozwój po śląsku: kapitalizacja kultury w śląskiej społeczności górniczej

Marta Klekotko
Jagiellonian University Press 2012

Selected journal papers

2021: Mathematics of Culture, or How to Count the Cultural Character of a City? Ask:Research and Methods. Volume 30, Issue 1 (2021), pp. 81-104 (in English) 

2018: “Communal Practices in Postmodern City: In Search of New ResearchPerspective”, Miscellanea Anthropologica et Sociologica 2018, 19(1): 209–229 (inPolish) 

2018: “Between Locality and Communality: Community Creation Aspects of UrbanScenes”, Folia Sociologica, Vol. 64, pp.5-19 (in Polish) 

2018: “Civil Society, Governance and Community Sustainable Development: ACognitive Approach on the Example of Rural Poland”, EMECON Employmentand economy in Central and Eastern Europe, No 1/2018,http://www.emecon.eu/Klekotko (in English) 

2018: (in cooperation with Anna Jastrzębiec-Witowska, Krzysztof Gorlach, Piotr Nowak)“Think locally and act globally: understanding human development in the era ofglobalization”, Eastern European Countryside, Vol.24 (in English) 

2014: A city without character? Polish metropolises and the theory of scenes, PrzeglądSocjologiczny, p.171-196 (in Polish) 

2014: (in cooperation with Krzysztof Gorlach and Piotr Nowak) “Culture and RuralDevelopment: Voices from Poland”, Eastern European Countryside, No 20, p. 5-27 (in English)  

2013 (in cooperation with Krzysztof Gorlach) “The Non-Bermuda Triangle: Scenes,Networks and Social Movements in not only Rural Development”, FoliaSociologica, nr 44, p. 25 – 38 (in Polish)   

2013: (in cooperation with Krzysztof Gorlach and Piotr Nowak) “Human development-sustainable development – progress: an attempt at rural change”, Wieś iRolnictwo, nr 3 (160), p. 7 – 27 (in Polish) 

2012 (in cooperation with Krzysztof Gorlach and Seweryn Grodny) „Economy andculture: some mutual relations ”, Studia Socjologiczne, vol. 205 (2), p. 169 – 190 (in Polish)  

2011 (in cooperation with Krzysztof Gorlach) “On locality once again: mesostructuralrelations in a globalized society”, Annales Universitatis Mariae Curie-Sklodowska,vol. XXXVI, no 2, p. 47 – 69 (in Polish) 

Selected book chapters

2024: Scena miejska a wspólnotowość w miastach. In: A. Michalska-Żyła (Ed.) Wmetropolii i poza metropolią – społeczny potencjał odrodzenia i rozwojuspołeczności lokalnych. Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego.

2021: (in cooperation with Gorlach, K., Jastrzębiec-Witowska, A., Goryś, G., Łucka, D.,& Nowak, P. Thinking and acting in the age of local-global relations : think locallyand act globally. In K. Gorlach, Z. Drąg, A. Jastrzębiec-Witowska, & D. Ritter (Eds.),Think locally, act globally : Polish farmers in the global era of sustainability andresilience (pp. 31–93). Jagiellonian University Press.

2020: “Sceny miejskie i praktyki wspólnotowe w wielkim mieście,” in Dudkiewicz, M.,Lewenstein, B., and Winiarska, A. (eds) Wielkomiejskie wspólnoty: trwałość izmiana. Warszawa : Instytut Stosowanych Nauk Społecznych UW, pp. 120–140.

2019: “Urban inequalities and egalitarian scenes: Relationality in urban place-makingand community-building and paradox of egalitarianism”, in: Marta Smagacz-Poziemska, M. Victoria Gómez, Patrícia Pereira, Laura Guarino, SebastianKurtenbach and Juan Jose Villalon (eds.) “Inequality and Uncertainty - CurrentChallenges for Cities”, Palgrave Macmillan (in English)

2011: (in cooperation with Krzysztof Gorlach) Place, locality, globalization: AnAttempt at the Community Studies in the Postmodern Society, In: H.Podedworna, A.Pilichowski (eds) Rurality and Rural Areas in Poland: Diversityand Processes of Diversification, Warsaw: IFiS PAN, p. 25-55 (in Polish)

2009: Echoes of History of Silesian Mining Community. Long Durée in Radzionkow inUpper Silesia. [in:] B. Tuziak, A. Tuziak (eds) ‘Regional Dimention ofTransformation Processes in Poland’ Warszawa: SCHOLAR (in Polish)

2009: In Search of a Balance: Local Development in an Age of Globalization. TheCase of Radzionkow in Upper Silesia. [in] E.Psyk-Piotrowska (ed.) „Social Capital.Civic Participation. Local Development”. Lodz: University of Lodz Press (in Polish)

2008: (in cooperation with: Krzysztof Gorlach, Tomasz Adamski) Nature and ResourceManagement Strategies: Cases from Poland [in:] K. Bruckmeier, H. Tovey (eds)“Rural Sustainable Development in the Konwledge Society”. Ashgate (inEnglish).

2008: Civil Society and Rural Sustainable Development in Poland. A CognitiveApproach. [in:] H. Podedworna, P. Ruszkowski (eds): “Social Aspects of RuralSustainable Development in Poland. Community Participation and SocialCapital”. Warszawa: SCHOLAR (in Polish)

2005: Rural Civil Society or Rural Civic Communities? How to Research Civility of RuralPeople? [in:] Krzysztof Gorlach, Grzegorz Forys (eds.) „In Face of Change: RuralPeople’s Strategies of Action at the Turn of the Centuries”. Krakow: JagiellonianUniversity Press (in Polish)

Urban Futures Lab is where twenty years of research, international collaboration and commitment to the future of cities come together — and where I put them to work.​ I created the Lab out of a passion for cities and a conviction that understanding the social and cultural forces shaping places can help us change them for the better. It is where I turn theory and research into practical tools, strategies and real-world solutions.​ Urban Futures Lab analyses the socio-cultural potential of places and emerging urban processes, turning this knowledge into strategies for urban development, stronger communities and better-informed investment. It is a space where research becomes action — and knowledge helps shape more vibrant and meaningful urban futures.

GO TO urbanfutureslab.eu

Have a project, a question, or a problem to solve?

I work with cities, institutions, organisations and research teams that want to better understand how social, cultural and spatial dynamics shape everyday life, local development and collective futures. I can help you design research, interpret data, diagnose urban and community challenges, develop strategies, prepare reports, build partnerships or turn an initial idea into a strong project proposal. If you are looking for a researcher, advisor or consultant who can combine academic expertise with practical thinking, I would be happy to hear from you. 

Let’s explore what we can do together!

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