COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH NETWORK-CRN STATUS

The IAI CRN program has established a broad network of scientists and institutions across the Americas and globally, leveraging over US$ 20.7 million in additional funds. The initiative has supported 429 students and produced a significant volume of refereed publications between 1999 and 2003. Specific project summaries highlight research on climate variability in Mesoamerica, water quality in the Andean Amazon, ENSO risk management, biodiversity in grasslands and forests, and the impacts of cattle ranching on deforestation in Brazil, Peru, and Ecuador.

• The CRN program has successfully leveraged additional or parallel financial resources exceeding US$ 20,760,113, which are received as subsidies by scientists and institutions rather than by the IAI itself.
• The CRN initiative has benefited 429 students, consisting of 161 at the undergraduate (BSc) level, 128 at the graduate (MSc) level, and 140 at the PhD level.
• Between 1999 and 2003, the network produced a total of 298 refereed publications and books, with the highest annual output occurring in 2001 with 102 publications.
• Research under CRN 073 focuses on climate variability in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, specifically studying the 'mid summer drought' to improve regional climate predictions.
• CRN 047 investigated water quantity and quality in the Andean Amazon, establishing seven new river gauging stations and three new meteorological stations, and creating the Andean Amazon Research Station in the Peruvian Amazon.
• CRN 031 developed the DESINVENTAR disaster database, which contains spatially disaggregated information for eight countries over at least 30 years, used to construct risk indicators for national and sub-national planning.
• CRN 009 found that in Peru, monetary incentives to shift away from coca production can lead to increased deforestation because lands previously used for coca are often only convertible to pasture, meaning cattle ranching can actually slow deforestation in some contexts.
• CRN 001 research in Northeast Brazil demonstrated that agroforestry systems using Gliricidia sepium trees and maize yielded 150% more biomass than systems without trees, increasing productivity and carbon sequestration.
• CRN 061 consolidated a network of scientists and institutions in Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay to address gaps in oceanic global change research in South America, including studies on the South Atlantic's role in global thermohaline circulation.
• CRN 003 uses dendrochronology to reconstruct climate variability in Latin America and has established new laboratories in Mexico, Bolivia, and Brazil.
• CRN 055 conducted a pilot project on floods in the Paraná River, finding that two-thirds of major discharge anomalies occurred during El Niño events, while none occurred during La Niña phases.
• CRN 048 investigated the relationship between climate variables and diseases like dengue and malaria across Brazil, Mexico, Jamaica, Venezuela, and Colombia, noting that in Venezuela, relative humidity and mosquito abundance significantly affect monthly malaria incidence.

APA

BANUS, E. M. (2004). COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH NETWORK-CRN STATUS. Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. https://archive.iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/7_CRN.pdf

Chicago

BANUS, EDUARDO M. COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH NETWORK-CRN STATUS. Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research, 2004. https://archive.iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/7_CRN.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=BANUS |first1=EDUARDO M. |title=COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH NETWORK-CRN STATUS |publisher=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |date=7 June 2004 |url=https://archive.iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/7_CRN.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{banus2004collaborative, author = {BANUS, EDUARDO M.}, title = {{COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH NETWORK-CRN STATUS}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {2004}, month = jun, url = {https://archive.iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/7_CRN.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }