# Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs

Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs (COMNAP) is an international association that develops and promotes best practice in managing the support of scientific research in Antarctica. Members are composed of national research programs who respective governments are signatories to the Antarctic Treaty committing the continent as a natural reserve.
COMNAP members are responsible for the operation of around 80 research stations and the other infrastructure that supports science across Antarctica. Its secretariat is in Christchurch, New Zealand. COMNAP has an observer status and reports its activities at the yearly Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings.

## Activities

Through collaboration, members gather research data from all Antarctic regions from terrestrial, marine and atmospheric environments. COMNAP convenes geographic regional break-out groups covering the Peninsula, Ross Sea, East Antarctica, Larsemann Hills, Dronning Maud Land, and High Plateau. Antarctic research is enabled by a multitude of key scientific infrastructure, facilities and support platforms operated by countries across these regions and disciplines.
COMNAP has developed comprehensive guidelines on a range of topics in support of science in Antarctica. These include air safety, managing waste, preventing oil spills, contingency planning and reducing impact on the Antarctic environment. It has established working groups and networks addressing such issues as shipping and air operations, energy management, training and environmental issues.

## Membership

Countries engaging in Antarctic research, which are also signatories to the Antarctic Treaty and the Environmental Protocol may participate in COMNAP. Membership is open to those countries’ national agencies responsible for planning and conducting Antarctic operations in support of science.
| Country | National Antarctic Program | Status | Year-round facilities | Seasonal facilities |
| Argentina | Dirección Nacional del Antártico | Founding Member | 6 | 7 |
| Australia | Australian Antarctic Division | Founding Member | 3 | 0 |
| Belarus | National Academy of Sciences of Belarus | Member since 2015 | 0 | 1 |
| Belgium | Belgian Federal Science Policy and Polar Secretariat | Member | 0 | 1 |
| Brazil | Programa Antártico Brasileiro | Founding Member | 1 | 0 |
| Bulgaria | Bulgarian Antarctic Institute | Member since 1994 | 0 | 1 |
| Canada | Polar Knowledge Canada | Member since 2022 | 0 | 0 |
| Chile | Instituto Antártico Chileno | Founding Member | 3 | 6 |
| China | Chinese Arctic and Antarctic Administration and Polar Research Institute of China | Founding Member | 2 | 2 |
| Colombia | Colombian Ocean Commission | Observer | 0 | 0 |
| Czech Republic | Masaryk University | Member | 0 | 1 |
| Ecuador | Instituto Oceanográfico y Antartico de la Armada | Member | 0 | 1 |
| Finland | Finnish Antarctic Research Program at the Finnish Meteorological Institute | Member | 0 | 1 |
| France | Institut Polaire Français Paul-Émile Victor | Founding Member | 2 | 0 |
| Germany | Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research | Founding Member | 1 | 2 |
| India | National Centre for Polar & Ocean Research | Founding Member | 0 | 2 |
| Italy | Programma Nazionale Di Ricerche in Antartide | Founding Member | 1 | 1 |
| Japan | National Institute of Polar Research (Japan) | Founding Member | 1 | 0 |
| Malaysia | Sultan Mizan Antarctic Research Foundation | Observer | 0 | 0 |
| Netherlands | Dutch Research Council | Member | 1 | 0 |
| New Zealand | Antarctica New Zealand | Founding Member | 1 | 0 |
| Norway | Norwegian Polar Institute | Founding Member | 1 | 0 |
| Peru | Division of Antarctic Affairs | Member | 0 | 1 |
| Poland | Poland Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Polish Academy of Sciences | Founding Member | 1 | 0 |
| Portugal | Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia | Member since 2023 (Observer since 2015) | 0 | 0 |
| Russia | Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute and Russian Antarctic Expedition | Founding Member | 5 | 5 |
| South Africa | South African National Antarctic Programme | Founding Member | 1 | 0 |
| South Korea | Korea Polar Research Institute | Founding Member | 2 | 0 |
| Spain | Comité Polar Español | Founding Member | 0 | 3 |
| Sweden | Swedish Polar Research Secretariat | Founding Member | 0 | 1 |
| Switzerland | Swiss Committee on Polar and High Altitude Research | Observer | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey | TÜBITAK Marmara Research Center, Polar Research Institute | Member | 0 | 0 |
| Ukraine | National Antarctic Scientific Center of Ukraine | Member | 1 | 0 |
| United Kingdom | British Antarctic Survey | Founding Member | 2 | 1 |
| United States | National Science Foundation Office of Polar Programs | Founding Member | 3 | 0 |
| Uruguay | Uruguayan Antarctic Institute | Member | 1 | 1 |
| Venezuela | Venezuelan Institute for Scientific Research | Observer | 0 | 0 |