The Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN) is a national academic institution, founded by a Parliament act in 1952. PAN’s statutory goals are to promote the comprehensive advancement of science, co-ordinate scientific theoretical and empirical research, and provide expertise for practical application. PAN consists of two separate structures:
the autonomous and self-governed corporation of scholars with around 350 national and correspondent members and about 190 foreign members,
research institutes of the Academy.
PAN is located in Warsaw, with branches in Kraków, Wrocław, Poznań, Katowice, Łódź and Gdańsk.
The Institute of Philosophy and Sociology (IFIS PAN) is one of the research centres of the Polish Academy of Sciences. Established in 1956, it is one of the oldest institutes of sociology in Eastern Europe. The Institute’s primary objective is to carry out advanced research in philosophy and sociology and also in cognition and communication. In addition to research, the Institute is engaged in education, publishing and the popularisation of the sciences. In 2004, the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology gained the status of the Centre of Perfection granted by the Ministry of Science and Information as the first institute in the First Department (of Social Sciences) of PAN.