Asia Pacific covers 65% of the world population and two of the world's largest oceans. Its economic profile has been changing rapidly. Some economic successes are not without accompanying costs. Environmental issues, such as global warming, know no national border. They are evidence of complex linkages in the modern world whereby the vibrant national economies for some can work to undermine the bases for a sustainable life for others. This raises a number of important questions: 1) how can policy coordination be sustained among the countries when the beneficiaries of economic development may not coincide with those who bear the burden for that development? 2) How can an environmental issue in one country be properly recognized by others in distant areas? 3) How can environmental issues as perceived at local level be communicated effectively and efficiently to the policy-makers?

The Asia Pacific region, with an immense diversity in cultural, geographic, economic, political, and historical make-ups, offers an excellent site to explore these questions. On a per capita basis, the emissions of greenhouse gases in most countries in this region have historically been lower than in other industrialized parts of the world although it is predicted that China will overtake the United States as the world's biggest emitter of CO2 before 2010. Climate change, its underlying causes, mitigation and adaptation, therefore is a matter of great importance for the region.

At the same time, it is predicted that world energy demand will expand by more than 50% by 2030. Two-thirds of the increase will be from developing countries, led by China and India. These trends amplify the magnitude of global climate change but also raise fundamental questions regarding the issue of energy security and sustainability in the region.