Do a business
in Hajnówka
LOCAL RESOURCES AND PRODUCTS
Hajnówka is famous for the excellent quality of local products. This is, for example, the famous Marcinek cake, lime honey, products from the cheese factory “Cheese from Białowieża Forest” or cottage cheese and butter produced by a local dairy cooperative.
Products loved by visitors, less appreciated by locals. We want to develop a diversified, strong and modern economy in Hajnówka. We want to teach potential entrepreneurs to run a business based on local potential.
LOCAL PRODUCT CENTER
An important element of the project will be the Local Product Center, the aim of which is to intensively promote local products. Local producers will be able to learn about the necessary formal, legal, tax and sanitary requirements related to introducing a loyal product to the market.
A number of activities related to the implementation of the brand strategy have also been planned. There will also be a “Breakfast Fair”, courses and training in the production of local specialties based on traditional recipes.
EDUCATION OF YOUTH
There is no tradition of running a business in Hajnówka. This is due to the nature of the city where people have been coming to work in the timber industry for decades. In particular, there was no tradition of running a business based on local resources, but not based on their exploitation. To change that, you have to start with youth education. To this end, we plan to carry out a major qualitative change in secondary education. The questionnaires completed by secondary school students show that they were not sufficiently prepared to find their place on the labor market. The proposed fields of study do not meet the needs of this market. Hence, graduates are not able to compete with the skills sought by employers. It is also not easy for them to master the principles of entrepreneurship.
Class profiles should be modified to better suit the needs of the labor market. Old industrial halls, in turn, will be transformed into modern laboratories and demonstrators. We will also provide extensive consultancy related to running a business in schools.
Katarzyna Drużba / HDK Stage Song Studio / photo: Zbigniew Dzwonkowski
fot. Artur Borowik
TREND IN TOURISM
Rich culture, handicraft skills, a well-known wood-processing school, authenticity and originality constitute a huge capital, which was not used due to the reluctance to take up challenges by the city’s management. It is a capital worth using in tourism. The more so because the tourist profile is changing. More and more people, instead of crowded routes, stalls with quasi-souvenirs and fast food stalls, are looking for peace, good food and contact with nature. The enormous natural values of the Białowieża Forest create a reason to visit a place that guarantees peace, quiet, phenomenal experiences and experiencing nature.
ACADEMY OF NATURE
Among the activities, we plan to establish the Academy of Nature – a hub of educational and cultural services that will allow you to fully experience all the natural processes that are provided by the surrounding nature. It is more of a concept than one specific place. It will consist of many points located in the center of Hajnówka. Their task will be to make the forest “enter” into the city.
At the same time, we want to show and teach how to use the treasures of this unique forest wisely. It is supposed to be interactive, through experiential learning, not boring lectures. The location of the Academy will be determined within the new city center.
Pompik the Bison Glade
Pompik is a favorite of many kids, a character by Tomek Samojlik. The little bison was “born” right here, in Hajnówka, and we would like it to be present in the city space and the awareness of its inhabitants as its showpiece. Pompik the Bison Glade is an important undertaking from the point of view of creating a new city center, but also the Academy of Nature, of which the Glade will be a part. It will be designated in the city park and will be a place of fun and education. It will appear in the form of an installation of a farm with figures of the heroes of fairy tales about Żubr Pompik and the accompanying infrastructure. It will not be an ordinary playground, although of course there will be no shortage of fitness challenges here. The place is supposed to combine several functions. First – education. Children will have the opportunity to acquire basic knowledge about the bison. What specific devices will be used for this will soon be revealed, when a detailed concept of the place is created.
In addition to the Pompik space, we are planning infrastructure elements in the park that will also be used by adults.