Asia Science Mission

for Sustainability

Asia Science Mission for Sustainability

A new way to do science―for people, planet and future generations in Asia

What is ASM?

The Asia Science Mission (ASM), led by the International Science Council and Future Earth, is a regional initiative designed to connect science, policy, practice, and investment around shared missions. Through demonstration initiatives across Asia, ASM is building the coordination, learning, and sequencing needed to move beyond isolated pilots and support system-level transformation.

Learn more about ASM

How we work

The Asia Science Mission (ASM) works by catalysing early-stage actions that unlock long-term, system-wide impact. It fills the “missing middle” between research and investment by supporting solution discovery, prototype testing, risk mapping, stakeholder alignment, and the development of investable pathways. By aligning science, policy, and community priorities from the outset, ASM flips traditional linear models of research into co-created mission pathways. These pathways reduce uncertainty, enable intelligent risk-taking, and allow promising innovations to learn, adapt, and mature toward scale.

At its core, ASM is a regional learning and coordination system that connects scientists, governments, communities, Indigenous knowledge holders, and other actors across Asia. Using a mission-oriented, systems-based approach, ASM focuses on underinvested but high-impact domains such as climate resilience, ecosystem restoration, and cross-border water and risk security. Through living labs and shared learning networks, ASM turns fragmented efforts into aligned action—accelerating the journey from ideas to real-world impact for people and nature.