A Network for Industrial Environmental Management (NIEM) was established comprising of research institutions, laboratories, government agencies, and pulp and paper mills located in seven countries of the Asia and the Pacific region (China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka and Thailand). The network catalyzed the participating institutions of the seven countries in cooperating and coordinating on information exchange regarding environmental management in small pulp and paper mills. It established a procedure for information exchange and collaborative research, which was previously non-existent among these institutions.