Institute of Ecology of the Carpathians of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine was established on the basis of Lviv branch of Kholodnyy Institute of Botany of NAS of Ukraine (separated from State Natural History Museum of NAS of Ukraine in 1974) according to the administrative regulation of the Presidium of NAS of Ukraine #275 from Oct. 21, 1991. The main scientific lines of the Institute are: complex research of ecosystems and geosociosystems of the Ukrainian Carpathians and the adjacent territories, working out of the regulation ways of their structure and managing of ecosystem and geosociosystem processes with the purpose of optimization of useful functions; working out and improvement of the methods of biodiversity conservation and ensuring of sustainable development of the Carpathians and the adjacent regions; the research of plant ontogenesis mechanisms, structural and functional variability of populations under the influence of exogenous factors.
The Institute includes four scientific departments: Ecosystemology with the Laboratory of soil chemistry and biochemistry (Head – Dr Iryna Shpakivska); Population Ecology with the High-mountain biological station near Pozhyzhevska Mount in the Chornohora (Head – Dr Sci Volodymyr Kyyak); Nature Ecosystem Conservation (Head – Dr Oleksandr Kagalo) and Plant Ecomorphogenesis (Dr Oksana Lobachevska). Institute of Ecology of the Carpathians prepares scientific personnel of the highest education level by means of post-graduate study (“Ecology” and “Botany” specialties). Leading scientific schools in ecosystemology (Founder – Acad. Mykhailo Holubets), population ecology (Founder – Prof. Kostyantyn Malynovskyy), phytosozology (Founder – Prof. Stepan Stoiko), and plant ecomorphogenesis (Founder - Corr. Acad. Andriy Lazarenko) have been established within the Institute.