AGREEMENT ESTABLISHING THE INTER-AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL CHANGE RESEARCH

The 1992 agreement establishes the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) to coordinate scientific research on global change in the Americas. The IAI is structured as a regional network with four primary organs: the Conference of the Parties (policy-making), the Executive Council (executive), the Scientific Advisory Committee (scientific advice), and the Directorate (administration). Its objectives include promoting interdisciplinary research on earth, ocean, and atmospheric sciences, improving research infrastructure, and providing scientific information to governments for public policy. The initial Scientific Agenda focuses on tropical ecosystems, climate change impacts on biodiversity, El Niño Southern Oscillation, and high latitude processes. Funding is based on voluntary contributions from Parties and Associates, with operational expenses supported by pledges in increments of US$ 5,000.

• The Institute is established as a "regional network of cooperating research entities" with the goal of promoting interdisciplinary research on global change, specifically focusing on the sciences of the earth, ocean, atmosphere, and environment, as well as social sciences.
• The IAI's initial Scientific Agenda prioritizes several specific areas of study: tropical ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles, the impacts of climate change on biodiversity, El Niño Southern Oscillation and interannual climate variability, ocean/atmosphere/land interactions in the intertropical Americas, temperate zone oceanic, coastal and estuarine processes, temperate terrestrial ecosystems, and high latitude processes.
• The governance of the Institute is divided among four organs: the Conference of the Parties, which serves as the "principal policy-making organ"; the Executive Council, the "executive organ"; the Scientific Advisory Committee, the "principal scientific advisory organ"; and the Directorate, the "primary administrative organ".
• The Institute may designate Research Centers based on proposals from Parties. These centers must demonstrate a long-term commitment to research and are evaluated based on criteria including biogeographical coverage, logistics support, and the "existence of a scientific institution or nucleus at the site actively engaged, in whole or in substantive part, in global change research".
• Operational expenses for the IAI are funded through voluntary annual pledges from Parties for three-year periods, with contributions made in "increments of US$ 5,000". Major research programs are supported by voluntary contributions from Parties, Associates, or other international organizations and private entities.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (1992). AGREEMENT ESTABLISHING THE INTER-AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL CHANGE RESEARCH. http://iai.int/pdf/en/agreement_establishing_the_IAI_en.pdf

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. AGREEMENT ESTABLISHING THE INTER-AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL CHANGE RESEARCH. 1992. http://iai.int/pdf/en/agreement_establishing_the_IAI_en.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=AGREEMENT ESTABLISHING THE INTER-AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL CHANGE RESEARCH |date=1992 |url=http://iai.int/pdf/en/agreement_establishing_the_IAI_en.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearch1992agreement, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{AGREEMENT ESTABLISHING THE INTER-AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL CHANGE RESEARCH}}, publisher = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {1992}, url = {http://iai.int/pdf/en/agreement_establishing_the_IAI_en.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }