Charter

PREAMBLE

WHO WE ARE

• The Spectra, Centre of Excellence, is a training and research Centre, focused on generating and transfer of know-how and professional training in the field of spatial planning

• The Centre is based on the platform of Faculty of Architecture, Slovak University of Technology . All the activities are aimed to support and strengthen the FA STU authority in the domestic scene and abroad.

• We are the Centre characterised by intergenerational structure , finding its effect in the dynamics of our behaviour , interconnected to high ability for orientation and outgoing from experience and judgment.

• Purposefulness and creativity are the results of dynamics and orientation ability. These abilities are manifested in finding the ways to solve our tasks and goals.

• We are proud to be one of the guarantors of modern ways of spatial planning problems solutions. The modernity in all its meanings is perceived also as an ability to anticipate the changes and the ability to react towards those changes.

• Moreover, we are not merely the research-scientific subjects. We are also a humane subject, displaying that in the effort for achievement of the moral credit of the society.

GENERAL DECLARATIONS

CHAPTER 1

OUR MISSION AND GOALS

• Spatial planning is considered as a tool of fulfilling the needs of the citizens and organization, but also as one of the principal means of maintenance and development of human society and civilisation.

• Our products/outputs are not the mere service for selected target groups, but they are also a tool of humanisation of society . Sustainable development is the core idea in this context.

• We do accept a high social expectation invested into our activities and our status as a superior expert authority in the field of spatial planning and research area. We are aware of this kind of responsibility.

• Intensive development of spatial planning is a platform for various partnerships, interlinked by common interests and aims and avoiding the hierarchical structure. An optimal mixture is then the output.

• We support the idea of sustainable development and our relationship towards nature and the environment is based on partnership . Human society is more than a pure consumer of the natural resources. We strive to recognize, consider and coordinate the natural resources in order to bring the benefits for all.

• Our existence and activities are predestined to participate on creating the civilisation phenomenon – defined as a sample of social, cultural and economic conditions for self-realisation of each member of human society.

• Intensive development of human society may not occur in contradiction to principles of sustainability and ecology . The experiences from past development enable us to strengthen this dimension of our activity.

• Know-how and information is our principal product – we are striving to bring a high added value for our partners.

• Our activities and services are boundless in the time and space . One of the main principles of our activities is networking. This networking enables us continual integration of new partners and co-workers into the relevant research fields.

• The main mission of the Centre is to satisfy the needs of target auditorium by providing the relevant information, know-how and experiences. We are striving to keep the superior quality of this transfer and to guarantee a high degree of professional performance and ethic standard of the provided solutions.

• Our goals and aspirations are based on fulfilment of these assignments . We would like to be professional, communicative and ethic-advanced partner and herewith to integrate into the European research and scientific field.

• Our principal goal is determined by satisfaction, development and superior quality of services , not by commercial profit.

• We are deriving the outputs from demands and needs of information society and our outputs are fully compatible with those needs.

CHAPTER 2

VALUES

Innovativeness
The Centre is a carrier of new perspective trends in the field of spatial planning and is directly participating in the new research areas establishing, new knowledge and know-how transfer and further implementation.

Flexibility
The Centre is following and active participating in the latest development in the field of spatial planning and its organisational structure is able to respond the changes in all the relevant fields with high flexibility.

Responsibility
The Centre is a guarantee of professional performance, ethic capability and superior quality of provided solutions. It takes responsibility for further development in the field of spatial planning and satisfies the needs of human society in this context.

Partnership and openness
The Centre is accessible for cooperation with other scientific and research institutions and wants to provide the benefits of its activities even beyond the immediate target auditorium.

Tradition and continuity
The Centre links up the professional and personal background of the FA STU, its results, achievements and reputation of the Slovak urban planning tradition.

Dignity, trust, respect
The Centre is led with effort to gain and keep the esteem and respect of the partners and their confidence. The status of the Centre is a consequence of this effort.

Integration and integrity
The Centre establishes the platform for integration of the whole faculty and university research and education potential in the field of spatial planning. We are open to wider academic, intersectional and international collaboration.

Responsiveness, honesty and transparency
These are the basic values in the external direction. A willingness to provide information, honest intentions by its sharing and transparency of its content enables to profile the Centre as a trustful subject.

CHAPTER 3

SERVICES

• Particular activities of the Centre are deemed as service and readiness to serve to all the institutions and citizens of Slovakia , no matter of their political, regional or national status.

• We transmit information, know-how, research and scientific knowledge to make the orientation of partners in spatial planning field easier.

• We do accept critical views and we do support a skull session. The open discussion devoted to all relevant fields is welcome and initiated by us. We avoid demagogy and scientific arguments are highly preferred.

• We want to help create large community of experts , devoted to problems of spatial planning in order to provide self-realisation and feeling of wellness to all the members.

• We are aware of carrying the shared responsibility for prestige and reputation of profession „spatial planner“ .

• The main principles of quality assurance system are personal responsibility, professional guarantee and ethic qualification of final outputs. We link up to the approved management quality system and to the best domestic and foreign experiences from relevant fields.

• The superior quality of our activities (proceedings) is reflected in research and scientific programmes, expertises, readiness to act, vitality and good communication skills.

• We strive to take care of continuity of our activities – we would like to be an eligible partner.

• Competence and fair acting are the main platforms for Corporate Culture and Corporate Image of the Centre.

CHAPTER 4

MANAGING THE CENTRE

• A competent and fair partnership is a high priority of all our activities. We are committed to absolute respect of professional performance, communication and openness to various opinions, as well as to preservation of best tradition in environmental attitudes.

• Intensification is perceived as a mobilisation of inner potential , with the stress on maximal efficiency of available financial resources .

• The QAS ( Quality Assurance System) enables efficient management of the Centre and its activities in accordance with the modern management theory.

• The presence of foreign partners , who are known and recognized professionals, in the management structures of the Centre, their participation in the marketing communication and evaluation of running activities is a reflection of philosophy of openness and partnership.

CHAPTER 5

EXTERNAL COMMUNICATION

• Our behaviour targeted to external auditorium is led by fundamental values. The Centre displays as an eligible, flexible and competent partner keeping the superior quality and ethic standards of outputs. We communicate in transparent manner and we are open to demands of our partners. We strive to competent react on those demands. Our argument style is strictly based on facts and proved conclusions. Our statements are clear and intelligible. Transmission of positive, partnership-based and credible Corporate Image is a core of our external communication activities. We would like to be perceived as a „ good citizen“ .

• Competent partnership is based on responsibility towards the communication partners. This responsibility is reflected in communication and our readiness to solve problem issues.

• We want to be a p artner communicating with the surrounding, revealing the essential messages and being sensitive to demands of our partners. We are ready to start a dialogue with our partners and to answer their questions whenever.

• The most important partners in external communications are citizens and educational institutions . We are responsible to them.

• We hold on ethical and value principles of our activities in every moment and at every place. We strive to provide objective information and we do not conceal the important facts and do manipulate neither our partners nor the public.

• We occupy a strong and respectable position at international academic scene. Partners from abroad respect us and we pay respect to them. We are open to future cooperation and we want to exchange the knowledge and experiences.

• We are strictly neutral and non-political in giving the statements to non-relevant topics.

• We fully respect our partners in communication , we are ready to hear their opinions and respect their points of view at all.

• We strive to create a partner relationship towards media , in order to communicate with the wider public . Our goal in this context is to increase the objectivity of information served by media and shared in public.

• Consultancy and expertise activities are an important part of Centre´s scope. We deem consultancy for citizens and institutions as our contribution to development of modern principles of spatial planning and thereby increasing the environmental attitudes of public.

• Consultancy activities are targeted both to individuals (students, postgraduates, mayors) and organisations (universities, municipalities, local authorities). The aim is to build a partnership relation between the Centre and the other subjects.

• Popularisation activities are part of our external communication. The focus on this kind of communication is towards the academic competition and events, conferences, colloquia. We accentuate the education programmes.

CHAPTER 6

INTERNAL COMMUNICATION

• Highly qualified professionals are the most precious tools of intensification of our work. The co-workers are identified with the Corporate Mission and Corporate Philosophy. We are experts from various fields, carrying the common responsibility for the whole work, linking up the best spatial planning research tradition in Slovakia . The mutual responsibility leads us to teamwork and open communication.

• We are aware of the fact, that our co-workers are the basis for intensification and development of the Centre. We strive to help them identify themselves with the Corporate Mission. The internal communication is also built on corporate value and principles.

• An open atmosphere, supporting the democratic discussion on all the relevant topics is a characteristic trait of the internal environment of the Centre.

CHAPTER 7

HUMAN RESOURCES

• Inner policy and strategy of the Centre is aimed to meet the needs of the members and is focused to bring the optimal conditions for self-realisation and professional achievement of particular members.

• By setting up the optimal conditions for research activities, stabilisation of our co-workers is secured and this leads to social stability of our research and development environment .

• The wished characteristics of Centre´s co-workers are professionalism, teamwork, openness in communication, keeping the principles and fair play . Those characteristics are reflected in the quality of our services.

• All the activities of the Centre are feasible and sustainable only in case of participation of people appreciating and approving those personal characteristics and skills . We are confident that our co-workers are fitting those criteria.

• Our co-workers are highly qualified professionals in particular fields and their qualification is permanently upgraded.

• Our co-workers help develop other branches beyond the spatial planning , utilising their professional credit and potential.