4 Kozelnytska St., 79026, Lviv, Ukraine

Phone/fax: (0322) 70 7443; 70 7430;
e-mail: ecoinst@mail.lviv.ua

The Institute was founded on October 22, 1991 on the basis of the Lviv Branch of M. H. Kholodny Institute of Botany.

Research areas and achievements:

– integrated studies of structural and functional organization of ecosystems and geosociosystems, their anthropogenic changes, modes of regulation of biogeocenotical and geosocial processes, development of theoretical and methodological bases of integrated environment monitoring;

– stationary investigations of rare, relict, endemic and useful plant species population organization, their structural changes under anthropogenic pressure, mechanisms of populations regulation and management for their economical use and protection;

– investigations into ecological and chorological peculiarities of rare plant communities and species, elaboration of scientific basics of gene pool and biodiversity protection in Ukraine, conservation and rational management on the territories under protection;

– study of the initial changes and sequence of physiological, biochemical and morphological processes under inherent and external factors during implementation of heredity program of plant onthogenesis, research into the role of ecological and onthogenetical factors in adaptation, microevolution and possible ways of their regulation.

The results of research done by the Institute can be used for determining fundamental and applied aspects of biotic systems functioning at different organization levels in changeable environment. For the first time ever formulated was the concept of sociosphere – the global system whose central organizer is universal (in V. Vernadsky’s terms) humanity. The role of cybernetic memory and regulator of this global system is performed by human intellect. The necessity of a new field of ecology – that of ecosystemology – was grounded.

Science schools have been formed and have gained international recognition:

– ecosystemology (created by NAS academician M. Holubets);

– territorial sozology (created by Dr.Biol. Prof. S. Stoyko);

– population ecology (created by Dr. Biol. Prof. K. Malinovsky);

– experimental ecomorphogenesis of archegoniats (created by NAS corresponding member A. Lazarenko).

The Institute can propose to prospective partners:

– information on structure, productivity, storage of organic carbon, peculiarities of functioning and anthropogenic dynamics of forest, bush and meadow ecosystems and biogeocenotic cover of the Carpathians and Fore-Carpathians, peculiarities of distribution and phytomass stock in populations of useful plant species;

– methodological recommendations for improving forest management on timberline, rational use of high-mountain vegetation;

– ecological expertise of business projects and recommendations for their optimization;

– feasibility studies of forms of biological objects protection.