The Stanisław Leszczycki Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IGSO PAS) is a Warsaw-based research institute founded in 1953, originally as the Institute of Geography PAS.25 Its work spans physical and socio-economic geography, cartography and spatial organization, from environmental processes and climate to cities, population, rural development and regional change.28
The institute combines research with training, publishing and applied work. It shares research findings with government bodies and local authorities, and undertakes studies and expert assessments for public institutions and other organisations.210 Its Department of Spatial Organization, for example, has prepared expertise on transport-network development, the spatial effects of major centres, and the accessibility of cities and regions.3
International collaboration is a significant part of its activity: the institute reports participation in more than 50 international scientific and practical programmes and projects, alongside about 200 national research and applied projects over the preceding decade.2 Its work has also included contributions to Poland’s National Spatial Development Concept 2030 and activities connected with Poland’s 2011 presidency of the Council of the European Union.8 Current work includes the EU project “Co-imagining needs-based mobility visions for the proximity city,” led by Associate Professor Ewa Korcelli-Olejniczak, and the Interreg Central Europe project Bridge2East CE.41
The institute is directed by Professor Tomasz Komornicki; Associate Professor Magdalena Kuchcik is deputy director for science.11 It also operates the Central Library of Geography and Environmental Protection, described by the institute as one of the largest library centres of its kind in the world.7