| Etymology: | Asia is from ancient Greek Asia, a region of Anatolia. They were representing Luwian Aswia, the endoname. Subsequent expansion of Greco-Roman civilization and post-classical extension of commerce pushed the location indefinitely eastward. Pacifica is a modern neologism, "in the Pacific." |
The Asia Pacific Geoparks Network (APGN) is the regional geopark network of the Global Geoparks Network (GGN) and the UNESCO International Geosciences and Geoparks Programme (UNESCO-IGGP). Its main role is to coordinate the activities of GGN in the UNESCO regions of Asia and the Pacific, to promote networking between global geoparks and geopark professionals in the region and to provide support for sustainable economic development in geopark areas. As of 2020 February, the APGN had 60 institutional members (UNESCO Global Geoparks) in countries.[1] [2] The Pacific region is currently not represented by a global geopark, but there are ongoing geopark projects,[3] just as in other countries of Asia.
The APGN was founded in 2007 based on the proposal at the 1st Asia Pacific Geoparks Symposium in Langkawi (Malaysia). It was endorsed by GGN in 2008 and became its official regional geopark network in 2013, in compliance with its Rules of Operation.[4]
The governing bodies of the regional network as an agency are:
The personnel recognized as official members of the regional agency are:
See main article: List of UNESCO Global Geoparks in Asia. The region only approximately follows continental guidelines. Turkey and Russia are in the European network. Iran is in the Asia Pacific. Otherwise the country distribution is Australasia.
The member states of the APGN have established national geopark networks. By UNESCO rules a geopark must first apply for membership in the national geopark network and be accredited there before it can apply to membership in the regional geopark network. Having been accredited in the latter they may apply to the global network. This bottom-up method helps to insure that the member nations organize the activities of GGN on a national level first.
| Chinese National Geoparks | 39 | 236 | [5] | |
| Indonesian National Geoparks | 4 | 15 | [6] | |
| Japanese National Geoparks | 9 | 35 | [7] | |
| Korean National Geoparks | 3 | 7 | [8] | |
| Malaysian National Geoparks | 2 | |||
| Philippine National Geoparks | 1 | [9] | ||
| Thai National Geoparks | 2 | 4 | ||
| Vietnamese National Geoparks | 3 |
As a regional geopark network, APGN is the organizer of several workshops and seminars, capacity building activities, common projects, promotional activities, and common publications between the member countries and UNESCO Global Geoparks. Besides the regular meetings of the Advisor and Coordination Committees, the most important events of the network are the biennial symposiums, a place of exchange on research activities and management practices in geoparks.
| Symposium | Venue | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Asia-Pacific Geoparks Network Symposium | Langkawi UGG, Malaysia | 2007 | |
| 2nd Asia-Pacific Geoparks Network Symposium | Hanoi, Vietnam | July 2011 | |
| 3rd Asia-Pacific Geoparks Network Symposium | Jeju UGG Korea | September 2013 | |
| 4th Asia-Pacific Geoparks Network Symposium | San'in Kaigan UGG, Japan | September 2015 | |
| 5th Asia-Pacific Geoparks Network Symposium | Zhijindong Cave UGG, China | September 2017 | |
| 6th Asia-Pacific Geoparks Network Symposium | Rinjani-Lombok UGG, Indonesia | September 2019 |