Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research

What Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research does

APN is an intergovernmental network of 22 Asia-Pacific member countries, established in 1996 and headquartered in Kobe, Japan, that facilitates regional cooperation on global change research. It serves national policymakers, climate and biodiversity scientists, and capacity development practitioners by mobilising competitive research funding, convening expert working groups, and linking scientific outputs to policy processes. Governance is exercised through the Inter-Governmental Meeting (IGM), Steering Committee, Scientific Planning Group (SPG) and Capacity Development Committee (CDC).

APN's core products are two competitive grant programmes — the Climate Response Research Programme (CRRP) and the Capacity Building for Adaptation and Livelihood Enhancement (CAPaBLE) programme — supplemented by the APN Science Bulletin (a peer-reviewed regional publication) and the APN Information System (APNIS), which catalogues projects and outputs. Average grant sizes are modest (approximately USD 45,000 per CRRP project and USD 40,000 per CAPaBLE project), and over 30 years APN has supported more than 60 competitively selected projects, totalling 312 regional research projects and 248 capacity development projects with 2,675+ associated publications.

The organisation is funded entirely through assessed contributions from its 22 member governments rather than commercial revenue. Its "go-to-market" is diplomatic: member-state focal points, ministerial participation at IGMs, and partnerships with allied institutions such as the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) and Japanese prefectural authorities. There is no pricing model, sales channel, or ARR in the conventional sense, and revenue predictability is a function of multilateral political commitment rather than market demand.

Name

Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research

Legal name

Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research

Website

https://apn-gcr.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

APN is an intergovernmental network of 22 Asia-Pacific member countries, headquartered in Kobe, Japan, that funds global change research and capacity development through competitive grant programmes (CRRP, CAPaBLE) and links regional scientists to national policymakers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

International Research Network Services

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172), Environmental Consulting Services (54162)

SIC

International Affairs (9721), Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Science, Technology & Innovation Administration (National R&D Policy) (BPAIAAAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Research Administration & Grants Management Support (Pre/Post-Award, Compliance) (EDAEALAO)

Keywords

• Global change research
• Scientific capacity development
• Intergovernmental research network
• Science-policy linkages
• Regional research funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Kobe

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Member Country Contributions: APN operates as an intergovernmental network funded by contributions from its 22 member countries. The organization does not generate commercial revenue but relies on governmental funding to support its collaborative regional research programme (CRRP) and scientific capacity development programme (CAPaBLE).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

APN is an intergovernmental network of 22 member countries that funds and coordinates collaborative regional research on global change and sustainability in the Asia-Pacific. It operates competitive grant programmes such as the Collaborative Regional Research Programme (CRRP) and the CAPaBLE programme for scientific capacity development, while also supporting science-policy linkages, early-career professionals, and publishing the APN Science Bulletin.

Product overview

APN operates as an intergovernmental network supporting three core product lines: (1) the Collaborative Regional Research Programme (CRRP) for multi-country research funding, (2) the CAPaBLE Scientific Capacity Development Programme for building research capabilities, and (3) the APN Science Bulletin for disseminating peer-reviewed research. Supporting infrastructure includes the APNIS online proposal submission system, the Mitra Award for recognizing early career researchers, and science-policy linkage activities. APN's work spans six thematic areas: Air/land/coasts/oceans, Biodiversity/ecosystems, Climate, Food/water/energy, Human dimensions, and Risk/resilience.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Collaborative Regional Research Programme (CRRP)

Quantifiable outcome

• 60+ projects funded since 1996, with USD millions awarded as project grants as of July 2020
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

AI capability8 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 July 2026IGES organizes the International Forum for Sustainable Asia and the Pacific (ISAP). APN co-organizes Parallel Session 3 (SDGs International Forum 2026) with IGES as part of ISAP2026, focusing on climate change and biodiversity synergies.
• Hyogo Prefectural GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 July 2026Co-organizer of SDGs International Forum 2026 Parallel Session with APN and IGES. APN collaborates with Hyogo Prefecture on nature positivity initiatives and international symposia. Hyogo provides venue and support for APN activities in Japan.
• National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 July 2026NRCT serves as Thailand's principal government agency for research and APN's national focal point. Hosted the 27th Intergovernmental Meeting and Scientific Planning Group Meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, July 2026. Dr Monthip Sriratana, Senior Adviser at NRCT, delivered welcome remarks at the opening ceremony.
• Asia Science Mission for SustainabilityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 July 2026Institutional partner that participated in the 11th APN Early Career Professional Poster and Networking Session displays alongside other partners.
• Asian Institute of TechnologyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 July 2026Institutional partner that participated in the 11th APN Early Career Professional Poster and Networking Session displays.
• North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 July 2026Institutional partner that participated in the 11th APN Early Career Professional Poster and Networking Session displays.
• University of the South PacificminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 July 2026Institutional partner that participated in the 11th APN Early Career Professional Poster and Networking Session displays.
• Tamba Region Environmental Partnership CouncilminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 January 2026Collaborated with APN and Hyogo Prefecture to organize the international symposium on 'Realising Nature Positivity and Regional Circulation: Bridging Global and Local Perspectives' held in Tamba City, Hyogo Prefecture.
• Siri-Tan Valley Promotion Council (Wood Valley Project)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 January 2026Partnered with APN for the Nature Positivity symposium in Tamba, contributing local perspective on regional circulation and sustainable practices.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP): UN system entity that sets the global environmental agenda and funds science-policy work. Overlaps with APN in driving science-policy linkages on sustainability, but with a global remit and far larger scale.
• UNESCO Natural Sciences: UN agency promoting international cooperation in science, including climate, biodiversity, and water. Overlaps with APN on science-policy interface and capacity building, with comparable intergovernmental character but a global scope.
• International Science Council (ISC): Global non-governmental organization that brings together national scientific bodies and unions. Comparable to APN as an international scientific convening body, but at a broader, global scale and without APN's regional grant-making role.
• Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC): United Nations body assessing the science of climate change. Comparable in providing the scientific basis for policymaking, but operates at global scale and produces assessments rather than funding regional research.
• InterAcademy Partnership (IAP): Network of the world's academies of science advising on cross-cutting global issues. Comparable to APN as an international scientific convening platform with regional academies, but focused on academy-level advice rather than competitive research grants.
• World Climate Research Programme (WCRP): Sponsored by WMO, IOC-UNESCO and ICSU, WCRP coordinates global climate research. Comparable as an internationally governed climate science program, though more global and focused purely on climate versus APN's six thematic areas.

Direct peers

• IIASA (International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis): International research institute based in Austria conducting systems-analysis research on climate, energy, and sustainability. Comparable as a multinational, intergovernmental-membership research institution producing policy-relevant science.
• Future Earth: International research network coordinating sustainability science across global change, biodiversity, and human dimensions. Overlaps with APN's six thematic areas and its science-policy linkage mission.
• START (global change SysTem for Analysis, Research and Training): International network that builds scientific capacity for global change research in Africa and Asia. Directly comparable to APN as a regional intergovernmental-style capacity-building and research-funding network with similar grant cycles and developing-country focus.
• Belmont Forum: Consortium of national funding agencies that co-funds transnational research on global environmental change. Comparable to APN in funding collaborative international research, convening multiple countries, and running competitive calls.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/apngcr

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research