Dr Joanna Kizielewicz Takes Up Position of Deputy Rector for International Relations

The establishment of the new position follows the separation of international relations as a distinct strategic area of the University’s activities. At the same time, from 1 September 2026, Professor Tomasz Tarasiuk, previously Deputy Rector for Internationalisation, Cooperation and Development, will take up the position of Deputy Rector for Enterprise and External Engagement.

As Rector Professor Adam Weintrit emphasised:

Internationalisation is today one of the key directions in the development of higher education. The decision to establish a dedicated position of Deputy Rector for International Relations, taken midway through my second term as Rector, is the result of an in-depth analysis of the University’s development priorities and a response to the dynamic changes we are currently seeing in maritime higher education both in Poland and abroad.

We concluded that, under the circumstances, this is no longer simply one possible course of action, but a necessary one. This calls for a clear separation of two strategic dimensions of cooperation: partnerships with business and community stakeholders, and the internationalisation of the University’s activities, particularly in education. Each has its own specific character and presents different challenges, and therefore requires separate, targeted action.

I trust that this new division of responsibilities will give both areas the attention they deserve and create the conditions for their continued, dynamic development.

Dr Joanna Kizielewicz has been professionally affiliated with Gdynia Maritime University since 1995 and has held a professorial position at GMU since 2017. Her academic management experience includes serving as Deputy Dean for Development and Cooperation from 2019 to 2024 and heading the Department of Management and Economics in 2019–2021 and 2024–2026. She has also been a member of the Gdynia Maritime University Senate and, since 2024, has served on the Senate Committee on Research.

A significant part of her professional activity has involved cooperation with academic institutions abroad. As a lecturer under the SOCRATES and ERASMUS+ programmes, she has taught at higher education institutions in Ireland, Italy, Croatia, Spain and Germany. She completed research stays at the Instituto de Economía Internacional at the Universitat de València and at the Institute of Maritime Tourism at Bremerhaven University of Applied Sciences. In 2025, she was a DAAD scholarship holder under the ‘Ostpartnerschaften’ programme, funded by the German Federal Foreign Office (Auswärtiges Amt). She also took part in a study visit to Aalborg University as part of the ‘Leaders in University Management’ project.

Her experience includes participation as a member of project teams and as a researcher in international research and development projects, including JOHANNA, a project carried out by the University of Dubrovnik, and the MARRIAGE project under the INTERREG South Baltic Programme. She was also the author and coordinator of the workshop ‘Maritime Education – Maritime Tourism – Maritime Innovation’, prepared in cooperation with the British Centre for Factories of the Future during European Maritime Day 2013 in Valletta, under the auspices of the European Commission. In 2026, she initiated cooperation with the American Institute of Polish Culture in the USA as part of the Heritage Polonia programme.

Since 2025, Dr Kizielewicz has served as an independent expert for the COST Association, evaluating international project proposals. She is a member of the International Association of Maritime Economists, the International Association of Scientific Experts in Tourism and the Women’s International Shipping & Trading Association, as well as scientific and programme committees of international conferences whose proceedings are indexed in Web of Science and Scopus. She is also a member of the Programme Board of the journal TransNav, the International Journal on Marine Navigation and Safety of Sea Transportation. She has authored more than 130 publications, with research interests focusing on project management, strategic management, inter-organisational relations, sustainable development and maritime passenger shipping.