Abstract
The local resources give rise to the competitive advantages of the area, on which they appear, since they are characterised by the rarity of occurrence. They can hardly be duplicated by the others or can hardly be replaced by other kinds of resources in other places. Further, such resources cannot be separated from the place of their appearance; they are deeply “rooted” in the local space and local society. Local resources may, therefore, constitute the basis for the development of the competitive edge of a single business, a small territorial unit, as well as an entire region. Local resources, in most general terms, may have material character (raw materials, products, environmental qualities, etc.) or the non-material one (interrelations, skills and capacities, interconnections, culture, etc.). Thus, we deal with a very wide spectrum of factors, having diverse origins and influencing the local and regional development in a variety of ways. These factors display also high spatial differentiation, owing to which they provide the possibility of elaborating various development scenarios and strategic solutions in the regions. A set of resources can be the basis to develop new products that will increase the region’s competitiveness. The main objective of this paper is the spatial identification and diagnosis of the specific resources in the Lublin region, as well as the assessment of their development-related potential. Examined region has a diversified structure of local resources, where predominate services and cultural elements. The spatial extent of their influence, however, is usually very limited. The level of uniqueness and usability of resources is usually medium or low and they have strong links with tourism and recreation. Among the resources that received the highest rating are: the Old Town in Zamość, Kazimierz Dolny town, coal, spa in Nałęczów town, stud in Janów Podlaski and high agricultural potential.
Publisher
Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization, Polish Academy of Sciences