Suwałki

Suwałki is a city situated in Poland in Podlaskie Voivodeship in north-eastern Poland, on the Czarna Hańcza river, in proximity to the borders with Lithuania, the Russian Federation and Belarus.

Suwałki is a city with district rights, the seat of the rural district and community. The city covers an area of 65.5 sq. km and is inhabited by around 70 thousand citizens. It is the second, after Białystok, largest city of the Podlaskie Voivodeship.

Suwałki is a city situated in Poland in Podlaskie Voivodeship in north-eastern Poland, on the Czarna Hańcza river, in proximity to the borders with Lithuania, the Russian Federation and Belarus.

Suwałki is a city with district rights, the seat of the rural district and community. The city covers an area of 65.5 sq. km and is inhabited by around 70 thousand citizens. It is the second, after Białystok, largest city of the Podlaskie Voivodeship.

A postglacial landscape, full of tiny lakes, hills and dense forests – this is where Suwałki lies. It is often said that Suwałki region has this “fairy-tale“ kind of beauty, and that each landscape is a ready-made postcard. The town is said to be the coldest spot in Poland (we even have a polar bear as our city mascot). We prefer to call it “a serene place”, for a cheerful spirit that is always present here, and the harsh climate which favours human kindness.

Challenge for the pilot

We have had clear signals that problems in children’s health related to non-communicable diseases based on our lifestyle now occur at a higher rate than in the past.

We believe that these problems which very often present themselves in preschool age may have a negative impact on future life quality and foster potential future diseases. Therefore it is better to tackle these problems in the early stages or prevent them before they even occur. As the causes of children’s health problems are oftentimes complex, a multisectoral approach is the best methodology to apply.

Realisation of activities (sports & healthy nutrition) for kids in preschool age from kindergartens and preschool units (also through using AR tools purchased in the project). Higher level of knowledge about nutrition & healthy lifestyle.

How the model for cross-sectoral cooperation benefitted the pilot?

The “binding” working version of the Model was presented in Kaunas, November 2019 – so almost one year of the life of our project was devoted to it. But during this time we had to act on our preparations for pilots & workshops.

How did the pilot benefit the life of the residents?

Brief description of main activities taken in the project:

  1. Workshops – planned as open sessions for kids, parents, teachers, administration and service staff: meetings and training sessions involving ca. 200 teachers and ca. 250 parents of children in pre-school age (planned 14 at least 11 workshops were realised).
  2. Pilots – organised in 3 educational units: ca. 220 kids in pre-school age.
  3. Purchase of XR tools for educational units.
  4. Project document in the field of prevention and health protection of children in preschool age.
  5. “Healthy gadgets” for kids in educational units.

The pilot resulted in improving children`s skills and habits in the fields of sport and recreation, as well as developing sports interests and healthy nutrition habits.

How was extended reality (XR) used in pilot?

There were 13 XR tools purchased for educational units (magic walls & magic floors).

Kids in preschool age use this tools during educational activities. The adaptation to XR project requirements and target group limitations (kids in preschool age) were our biggest challenges but also, finally, the success.

What was the value of having transnational peers in Healthy Boost project?

Big value! The peer consultation was made by two way–face to facet talks and via email way.

Discused topics: Problems&solutions about AR&XR tools purchases; Model use in projects; New catering regulations (&catering providers) about nutrition in schools; Pilot projects; Covid effect on pilot; Involvement of stakeholders.

Peer consultation with Jelgava was valuable and helpful. The advantage is that our pilots are similar. 

Peer consultation are based on the international frames (cities from different countries). We can know the situation of partner (e.g. Covid matters) and consult the ideas. It is a possibility to compare different systems and approaches.

New about the Suwałki pilot

All news items about Suwalki on Healthy Boost website.

Emil Sieńko
esienko [at] um.suwalki.pl