REPOSITORY
THE NICOLAUS COPERNICUS UNIVERSITY
IN TORUŃ
is an institutional repository of Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. The task of the Repository is to promote scientific achievements and research conducted at NCU and to support teaching.
Recent Submissions
Here, There, Nowhere: Urban Eviction as State Erasure of Roma Rights and Heritage between Bulgaria and Germany
(De Gruyter Brill, 2025-11-13) Trupia, Francesco
The latest urban eviction of dwellers from Sofia’s district of Zaharna Fabrika, home to one of the oldest Roma settlements in the city, has shone a spotlight on an “archipelago” of residential clusters in which spatial confinement and the steady erosion of basic rights wall off Roma communities and shrink their space for political participation. In his commentary, the author advances an intersectional reflection that foregrounds the deep-seated anti-Roma discourse and neoliberal urban replanning– phenomena that both had a particularly significant impact on the Bulgarian Roma and fostered far-right violence. Based on previous fieldwork and qualitative studies, this article highlights how the neoliberal restructuring and rescaling of cities drive the patterns of migration from Southeastern to Northern Europe, while the far-right’s anti-migration discourse is taking root within urban migrant/minoritised spaces.
Imination enables efficient formation of a pillararene-inspired host with endo-cavity hydrogen-bonding capability
(Elsevier, 2025) Bleus, Sem; Ribone, Sergio; Losus, Renny Maria; Dobrzańska, Liliana; Van Meervelt, Luc; Dehaen, Wim
The efficient design of novel macrocycles with enhanced properties over their parent scaffold represents a major challenge in supramolecular chemistry. Here, we exemplify imination as a purification-free method to develop novel pillar[n]arene-like macrocycles with partial-belt nitrogen functionalization. Compared to similarly sized pillar[n]arene-inspired arenes, the strategy provides an increased scalability and an up to 16-fold improvement in macrocyclization yield. X-ray crystallography and theoretical calculations reveal a similar electron density and cavity size as pillar[5]arene. The altered geometry and enhanced flexibility, however, permit complexing di-, tri- and tetrasubstituted cyanobenzenes, generating guest complementarity to all-carbon pillar[n]arenes. The suitable positioning of hydrogen bond acceptors facilitates binding based on endo-cavity hydrogen bonding, a feature largely unreported in peralkylated pillar[n]arenes. Reduction straightforwardly afforded a polyamine macrocycle of modified geometry.
Antarctic Security and Adequacy of Legal Regulations
(Elsevier, 2025-11-10) Szpak, Agnieszka
This paper critically examines the adequacy of the current legal framework governing Antarctica – the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) – in addressing emerging security-related risks in the region. With Antarctica facing mounting environmental threats from climate change, increasing tourism, potential bioprospecting, and strategic interest from global powers, the paper explores whether existing legal instruments are sufficient to mitigate these challenges. The study identifies significant regulatory gaps and ambiguities using legal and content analysis of relevant literature. These include unclear provisions on bioprospecting and resource use, limited enforcement and inspection mechanisms, insufficient responses to maritime and human security risks, and the growing dualuse nature of scientific activities with possible military applications. The analysis suggests that while the ATS has thus far maintained peace and environmental protection, its effectiveness is undermined by geopolitical competition and evolving global demands. The paper concludes that without legal and institutional reforms, such as more precise definitions, stronger enforcement mechanisms, and enhanced transparency, the long-term stability and credibility of the Antarctic governance regime may be at risk.