A consortium of educational institutions who facilitate educational exchange between APEC member economies, encourage NGOs, media and the business sector to engage in dialogues and collaborative research relating to APEC. There are 19 ASC throughout the Asia Pacific region who participate in an annual ASC consortium meeting and undertake a range of research activities.The New Zealand ASC is based at the University of Auckland. Its activities include research on the facilitation of information flows, the administration of a program of APEC research scholarships, and the organisation of seminars and public lectures on APEC-related themes.