Numerous environmental researchers have been trained for the latest scientific techniques. An extensive network has been built connecting academia, the private sector and government together across the region, and internationally. Currently, the project has been expanded into 11 Asian countries: China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The project was to involve nine countries/territories in Asia (China, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam), for the purpose of improving pollution monitoring in the region.