DIWPA issues a newsletter that contains news, reports and proposals from DIWPA members, as well as updated information of DIWPA members, symposia, workshops, scientific projects, international citizen program and other relevant programs and opportunities. A series of occasional books are published to present results from the activities of DIWPA.
DIWPA supports and organizes scientific projects, educational courses, NGO activities such as volunteer programs.
Research projects are organized by DIWPA for important topics. The selection of projects is made by the executive committee at competitive basis. Service at Field Stations may facilitate such research activities.
Funds for exchange program will be prepared to invite senior scientists to the core center, and send senior scientists to regional centers and field stations as their coordinators. Post-doctoral and pre-doctoral fellowships will also be prepared.
International field courses are held, in which under-graduate students from any country can participate. The sharing of field experiences by international students must become a basis for the conservation of biodiversity in future.
The above are essentially supported by governmental funds. The following NGO activities are also organized by DIWPA. International citizen programs include eco-tours and international festival for biodiversity, etc. International volunteer activities are welcome to support all the activities of DIWPA, especially the maintenance of field stations and conservation programs.
Another important aspect of DIWPA’s activities is its close cooperation with DIVERSITAS and international networks in other regions of the world.
The inventory system of DIWPA aims to improve the quality of specimens, by including DNA samples and secondary chemical compounds in addition to traditional specimens of morphology. The inventory system does not cover all organisms in the concerned region but focuses on specific groups that are intensively studied in DIWPA. Other specimens are arranged through close cooperation with already established museums and herbariums. The main inventory specimens are deposited at the core center and duplicate specimens are stored in regional center. Specimens and information are open to scientific research, industry and public use. The promotion of utilization of biodiversity is an important aspect of the inventory system of DIWPA.
With increasing threats of global change problems, DIWPA is now committed to work with the major international global change programs to increase the prediction capacity of the long-term influences of ecosystem change and biodiversity loss in the Western Pacific and Asia (including Polynesia). DIWPA undertakes the rapid assessment of the current status and predictions of the ecosystem changes and biodiversity loss under the scheme of MAIRS (Monsoon Asia Integrated Regional Studies) of the ESSP (Earth System Science Partnership among IGBP, IHDP, WCRP and DIVERSITAS).