The Association of Polish Cities is an organization with rich tradition dating back to the interwar period. The years 1917-1939 brought a large number of achievements in the area of legislation as well as the economic and cultural promotion of cities. The organization was involved in editorial and training activity as well as in the extensive information exchange within a range of municipal civil services. The APC was also engaged in successful cooperation with similar organizations from other countries. After World War II the activity of the Association of Polish Cities was prohibited. The initiative of its restitution emerged following the first free local government election on 27 May 1990. In a couple of months the councils of over 60 cities had resolved to join the Association and in January 1991 the Restitution Congress took place in the city of Poznań - the statutory headquarters of the Association. In January 2008 the Association gathers 309 towns and cities. Inhabitants of the member cities of the Association account for ca. 75% of the urban population in Poland.

The Institute of Urban Development (IUD) located in Krakow, was established in the November 2002 following the decision of the Polish Minister of Infrastructure on joined resources of the Institute of Physical Planning and Municipal Economy - Krakow Branch (IGPiK O/Krakow) and the Housing Research Institute (IGM) in Warsaw. IUD (IRM) is a scientific and research institute. Its legacy contains a rich tradition and achievements in the areas of research and practical application of research results obtained in spatial planning, land management, environment shaping and protection, municipal and housing economies, building and real-estate management. The Institute has worked out self-developed and tested methods and techniques for resolution of specific problems. As a research and development unit carries out both continuous research and pilot projects and works on continuous quality improvement. The results of research works are used by the Polish Ministry of Infrastructure and other government agencies, Parliament committees and regional and local governments. The results of current operations are published in own publications and regular scientific and professional journals.

The history of the Górnośląska Wyższa Szkoła Handlowa (Katowice School of Economics) dates back to the 15th of May 1991, when the then Private College of Economics was opened. On the 15th of June 1994, the School was entered into the register of Non-Public Institutes of Higher Education and the name was changed to the one if functions under currently. At the time, the School offered degrees in two faculties: Management and Marketing, and Tourism and Recreation. On the 4th of December, 1997, the School was the first in Southern Poland to be permitted by the Ministry for Education and Training to offer courses at Masters level in Management and Marketing. A similar decision with regards to Tourism and Recreation was handed down on the 27th of November, 2001. Between 2001 and 2005, the School created five new faculties: Administration, Information Technology and Econometrics, Sociology and Physiotherapy. In 2002, the Żory Campus was opened, offering a Bachelor degree in Management and Marketing. Currently, the Katowice School of Economics, offers full time and part time degrees in three faculties with 7 different possible major courses of study. The Katowice School of Economics (GWSH) is consistently at the top of national rankings of non-public institutes of higher education - First in the Silesian area and in the top 5 on a national scale - according to publications such as "'Wprost", "Perspektywy", "'Rzeczpospolita", "Polityka" and "Home and Market".