The College of Ecology at Lanzhou University traces its origin to the Department of Botany and Department of Zoology established in 1946 and the State Key Laboratory of Arid Agroecology founded in 1995. In 1999, the Department of Biology, the Institute of Cell Biology, the Institute of Plant Physiology, and the State Key Laboratory of Arid Agroecology merged to form the School of Life Sciences. In 2018 Lanzhou University established a new Institute of Ecology. The organization underwent a major transformation in 2022 when the university merged the Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences in the School of Life Sciences and the Institute of Ecology to form the College of Ecology. The college administers the management service center, the scientific research and teaching center, and the field research station management center.

The college conducts world leading research to solve pressing national needs, with a special emphasis on the unique climate, complex environment, and rich biological resources in western China and the Silk Road region. Integrating theories and applications, the college conduct multi-disciplinary research to inform policies. The major themes of research include fundamental theories of ecological science, ecosystem restoration and pollution remediation for alpine and arid regions, and regional social-economic development theories. The overarching goal is to provide scientific support for National Ecological Security Barrier Construction and the Yellow River and Silk Road region protection and high-quality development.

The college is a doctorate granting institution for two degrees, Ecology and Forestry. The college is authorized to grant academic masters’ degree in ecology, academic masters’ degree in forestry, and professional masters’ degree in forestry. The college is also authorized to employ postdoctoral research associate in ecology. The discipline of Ecology was awarded doctorate-granting rights in 1986 and was recognized as national key discipline in 1987. In the fourth round of national discipline assessment, the college was rated "A” and was included in the “Double First Class” initiative. In 2021, the discipline development of ecology at Lanzhou University was rated excellent and was qualified for the next round First Class Discipline development program.

The College of Ecology has a nationally renowned team of faculty. Currently the college has 81 full-time faculty members including 28 professors, 30 junior research fellows, 20 associate professors, and 3 lecturers. Faculty younger than 45 comprises 76% of the whole faculty team. Fourteen faculty members have been recognized in national level talent programs.

The college currently has 103 undergraduate students and 533 graduate students. Built on its long tradition of excellence in undergraduate and graduate program, the college offers a wide range of academic trainings and professional development opportunities to students. More than 20 students have presented their research in major international academic conferences, and 28 graduate students have been awarded prestigious scholarships from the China Scholarship Council. During the past five years, 351 students have graduated (including 27 international students) from the program. Twenty-four alumini have been selected in the national level talents programs.

The college offers world class research platforms, including the State Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro‑Ecosystems, Gannan Grassland Ecosystem National Field Research Station, comprehensive experimental test and analysis center, high performance computing cluster, six provincial -level field research stations and a China-Pakistan jointly research station.

As the general Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Only innovators advance, only innovators are strong, and only innovators win." In the new era facing new challenges, the College of Ecology will be guided by its core mission of "cultivating innovative and interdisciplinary talents, producing ground-breaking research, and serving ecological civilization construction". The college will strive to promote cross-disciplinary integration, strengthen capacities for innovation and promote the construction of the ecological security barriers in the western region, protection of the Yellow River Basin, and the sustainable development of the western region.