the cosmopolitan review

Agnieszka Macoch graduated from University of Illinois in May 2008, earning a Master's degree in modern European History. She loves to travel and ride horses. Her main areas of interest include international relations, history and animal welfare. Agnieszka is heading to India this December to "experience the culture and people of this exotic region". In the near future she is also planning to pursue a career with the United States Foreign Service as a political analyst.

Aleksandra Styś graduated from the Institute of Applied Linguistics at the University of Warsaw in July 2007 and from the College of Europe in 2008. Passionate about the history and architecture of Warsaw, since 2006 she has worked as a city guide interpreting the complex beauty of the Polish capital to foreign tourists. She is currently working in Brussels.

Anna Kisielewska is a graduate of Concordia University in Political Science, though she's spent most of her career in the fields of translation and subtitling. Anna attended PiTR in 2008 and is now channeling its infectious energy into the Canadian Foundation for Polish Studies, organizing events and doing outreach with university students. Anna loves travelling and reading, but most of all, she loves spending time with her three-year-old son, Julian. Write to her: anna [at] cosmopolitanreview.com

Our webmasters. The men without which CR wouldn't exist. Patient, consistent and dedicated, Antoni (left) and Jan Kowalczewski are the founders of hip & happenin' angeltear.com. In their own words: "Angeltear came from a concept that innovative online tools do not need to be graphically challenged. Our focus has always been on usability and accessibility, by providing intuitive tools and solutions that result in increased sales for our clients, as well as a more enjoyable experience for all users."

A&J are 2006 PitR alumni. They have supported and sponsored CR from the moment it was born in our minds. Thank you!

David French, originally a Londoner, came to Poland as an adult to discover his Polish roots… and stayed. And now he has two totally new Polish relatives; his daughter Magdalena and son Oskar. He loves good pierogi ruskie and kawa zbożowa, and misses English chips. David is a translator and lectures at a teacher training college. In his spare time he visits the Czech Republic to buy bilingual English-Czech Raymond Chandler and Agatha Christie novels. Write to him: sherwood [at] davidfrench.pl

David Judson is currently the editor-in-chief of the Hurriyet Daily News (formerly Turkish Daily News). A native of California, David first came to Turkey as an exchange student in 1973. He later attended the University of the Bosphorus in Istanbul as well and earned his bachelor's degree in International Relations from the University of California at Los Angeles. David has also periodically covered political issues and earned a reputation as one of the leading American experts on the role of independent political parties in U.S. presidential politics after he accurately predicted the role a third party would play in the 1992 presidential election. Subsequently, he covered the campaigns of political maverick Ross Perot through both the 1992 and 1996 elections and the presidential campaign of consumer advocate Ralph Nader in 2000. Write to him: david.judson [at] tdn.com.tr

Dominic Roszak, a 2008 PitR alumnus, works for the Canadian Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism and is a Master of Arts student in Public Administration at Carleton University in Ottawa. He is passionate about politics and international affairs, with a niche interest in Poland and Eastern Europe. In his free time, when he can find it, he enjoys tinkering with computers as well as science-fiction shows and movies. His goals in the near future include travelling to Poland on academic exchange and eventually joining the Canadian Foreign Service.

Filip Dutkowski earned a degree in International Relations at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków, where he  studied a bit of everything within the framework of Individual Interfaculty Studies of Humanities. Later he graduated from the College of Europe in Natolin, Warsaw. Radical football fan, connoisseur of beer, keen traveler. Author of a guidebook to Iceland; co-author of a guidebook to Spain. Pretends to have read more books than he actually did. A true burgher of the Royal City of Kraków and a loyal subject of the Habsburg monarchy. Currently works in the Polish Press Agency (PAP).

Born in Warsaw, Filip Terlecki lived in Munich before settling in Canada. He studied Film at Ryerson University. Currently he works as Head of Research for National Geographic Channel Canada. Filip is also a freelance journalist and screenwriter. He contributes regularly to the popular culture magazine Naked Eye and has written columns for, and serves on the Community Editorial Board for the Toronto Star. Most recently, a 30 Rock spec script Filip wrote won first place at the 2009 WILDsound worldwide screenwriting competition. Fillip is also active in the Polish community as the Commissioner of the Poprad Sea Scouts in Burlington. He is also one of the founders of the Young Polish-Canadian Professionals Association and serves on the Executive Committee. In July of 2009 he was one of 16 delegates representing Canada at the First School for Leaders for the Polish Community Abroad; an initiative of the Polish Senate.

Irene Tomaszewski is a writer and founding president of the Montreal-based Canadian Foundation for Polish Studies and program director of Poland in the Rockies. She is the author of Inside a Gestapo Prison 1942-44: The Letters of Krystyna Wituska. She co-authored Żegota: The Council for Aid to Jews in Occupied Poland 1942-45 and wrote the screenplay for a documentary by the same title produced by Sy Rotter for Documentaries International (Washington DC). She was also the Associate Producer and Researcher for the CBC's A Web of War, a documentary about Poland in World War II. Write to her: irene [at] cosmopolitanreview.com

Jodi Greig is a student of Polish language at Jagiellonian University in Krakow. She is currently attempting to navigate her way through the terrible process of grad school application, and hopes to eventually continue her education in Slavic Studies via a Ph.D program. Her research interests include issues of identity in post-Communist women's literature and the Polish 19th century "social novel". When she's not reading, she enjoys drinking coffee and chasing pigeons around the Rynek.

John Guzlowski is an award-winning poet and blogger extraordinaire: http://lightning-and-ashes.blogspot.com/. A retired professor of contemporary literature at Eastern Illinois University, Guzlowski has written extensively on Polish, Jewish and Polish American writing and poetry. His own poetry is inspired by his parents’ years in German camps and the family’s experience as post-war immigrants and deals with the universal themes of trauma, pain, memory, parent-child relations and love.

After a brief stint in Singapore, South African Judith Browne, a 2008 PitR alumna, now finds herself in New York where she cuts (or breaks) her teeth on writer's block. Her love affair with Poland began when an anthology of Postwar Polish poetry arrived unexpectedly on her doorstep. Write to her: judith [at] cosmopolitanreview.com

Justine Jablonska is a graduate student at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. She is specializing in urban issues and global journalism. In her previous corporate life, she worked as an editor, writer, and project manager for various companies, including Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP, NASD, Humana, and Creative Powers Inc.

Kasia Szyndel is a graduate of International Relations and American Culture Studies from the University of Warsaw and European Interdisciplinary Studies from the College of Europe, Natolin. Of Polish origin, as a child she lived in the United States and today she loves to travel and discover new places and cultures. She works in the field of international affairs, but in her spare time she is passionate about the 1930s, Classic Hollywood cinema, and the life and work of The Oliviers.

Katarzyna Gajewska gallivanting to and fro down an eclectic path through life: a retired vagabond, at least for the time being, she is currently completing a degree in Social Sciences thumbing through topics including International Relations, Geography, Japanese and Urban Planning. Her aspirations for the future include completing her University Degree and then pursuing Architecture while dabbling heavily in the fine arts.

 

Polish-born Canadian Kinia Adamczyk, a 2006 PitR alumna and 2008 intern, completed a degree in journalism and communication studies at Concordia University, Montreal, the Hogeschool Utrecht in the Netherlands and the Danish School of Journalism and a Master's degree in European Studies at the College of Europe, Natolin, Warsaw. Kinia is a horse riding, tennis, languages, piano and travel addict. When she has time to read, she focuses on in-depth analysis of current events, especially about matters related to foreign policy, the Balkans, Turkey and the Caucasus.  Her traveling adventures are available at kiniaontheglobe.blogspot.com.

Krzysztof Rutkowski graduated from the University of Mannheim where he studied Business Administration. He then completed the post-graduate interdisciplinary European studies programme at the College of Europe in Warsaw, specialising in European Neighbourhood Policy. Because his childhood was split between Poland and Germany, he is keen on crossing borders. His greatest passions are sports, jazz and philosophy. Krzysztof is currently working at the PR agency Hill & Knowlton in Warsaw. He wants to be an engineer … in building bridges over the abysses dividing people. Write to him: krzys [at] cosmopolitanreview.com

Laura is a freelance editor and videographer in Montreal, Canada and designs web animations, such as the flash introduction for the cosmopolitan review. As a Communications graduate from Concordia University, she has worked on projects that range from documentaries, short films and corporate videos. She has lived in Denmark and loves to travel. For more information on her work, please visit www.laura-cohen.com (requires flash player). Write to her: laura [at] cosmopolitanreview.com

Marek Broniewski, a 2004, 2006, and 2008 organizer and participant at Poland in the Rockies, is studying for a Master's degree in International Human Resource Management at the London School of Economics. He is passionate about politics, and his interests include travel and languages. His plans for the near future are traveling around Europe and finding a way to settle permanently in London.

Marta Dąbroś, a Krakowianka and 2008 PitR alumna, graduated from the University of Alberta with degrees in Sociology and History. She works as an editorial assistant at the University of Alberta Chemical and Materials Engineering department, and impatiently aspires towards a future degree—and future—in archiving. When she isn’t out collecting lost photographs or spending her money on books, Marta cooks, birdwatches, and takes many glorious naps in the tub. Write to her: marta [at] cosmopolitanreview.com

Nina Jankowicz, a 2008 PitR participant, completed her sophomore year at Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania, where she is a Political Science and Russian Language double major.  Her future goals include pursuing graduate work in the field of Central and Eastern European Politics, in hopes of one day becoming involved in the diplomatic relations of this hotbed of political intrigue. Aside from academics, Nina performs with Greasepaint Productions, the student-run musical theater performance troupe at Bryn Mawr, and runs the college's most popular a cappella group, The Extreme Keys.  In whatever free time remains, Nina pursues an independent music career.

Finnish Noora Valkonen is a journalist and human rights activist currently completing a post-graduate degree at the College of Europe in Natolin, Warsaw. When Noora's not busy inquiring into the challengess facing the globe and seeking solutions for them by working accross the boundaries of journalism, research and NGOs, she skips the tube and "over-consumption", and instead indulges into art, nature walks, history, art, and books, preferably with a splash of wine, when appropriate. When away from Helsinki, she misses Finnish liquorice and her husband.Write to her: noora [at] cosmopolitanreview.com (picture: at the Polish parliament)

Norman Davies is a returning speaker at Poland in the Rockies. A British historian, he is noted for his publications on the history of Poland, Europe and the British Isles. Though formally retired from his academic post in 1996, Norman Davies continues to write and publish. He lives in Oxford and Cracow with his wife Maria, and has two sons. From 2000 - 2006 he was a Supernumerary Fellow at Wolfson College, Oxford: and is now a Visiting Fellow at Clare Hall, Cambridge.

Amongst other things, Patrycja Romanowska is graduate student in natural resource economics at the University of Alberta. In her parallel life, she is also the associate editor of Alberta Oil Magazine, an Edmonton Sun columnist and a mother to a beautiful five-year-old boy. In the oodles of free time that this leaves her, she cooks, bakes and goes on wilderness trips. Write to her: patrycja [at] cosmopolitanreview.com

Piotr Zalewski studied history in New York, ethnology in Krakow, international affairs in Exeter, and European politics in Warsaw. After working for the EU in Brussels, he's now living in the city of his dreams, Istanbul, where he recently joined European Stability Initiative, a think tank. He enjoys travel, journalism, food, photography, and the view from his rooftop.

Vincent Chesney is an associate psychologist at Selinsgrove State Center in Pennsylvania and an adjunct professor at Luzerne County Community College. An avid artist, Vincent enjoys both writing and painting. Next year the Byzantine style icon he painted commemorating Transfiguration Ukrainian Catholic Church in Shamokin, Pennsylvania, will be consecrated as part of the parish's 125th anniversary. Founded by Lemkos, Transfiguration is the oldest Slavic Byzantine church in the US. Write to him: vince [at] cosmopolitanreview.com

Wanda Urbanska, producer/host of the American television series Simple Living with Wanda Urbanska, promotes environmental stewardship, thoughtful consumption, community involvement and financial responsibility. The daughter of a Polish Nazi-era refugee father, she is a graduate of Harvard University, who went on to a successful writing career in Los Angeles. She is the author of six books, and her work has appeared in such publications as The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune, Vogue and Glamour. She hosted the PBS primetime special, Escape from Affluenza, and has appeared on such programs as the Today Show, CBS This Morning and Oprah, and was heard on NPR’s All Things Considered.