> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.therisk.global/organization/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.therisk.global/organization/governance-in-operation/regions-and-hubs.md).

# Regions and hubs

The regional level of Nexus Consortiums: six programme regions, fifteen planned hubs that are coordination roles and never offices, and Regional Nexus Consortiums that compare evidence on shared syste

**Where this fits.** Governance in operation › regional level · Universe, Reports, Standards · GCRI (Secretariat), GRF (regional councils) · Planning (G0), Reporting (Q2 and Q4 regional profiles) · canonical page.

## In brief

Regions exist because many of the largest risks travel through shared infrastructure and ecosystems: "a dam upstream, an interconnector, a strait, a subsea cable" ([Six programme regions](https://therisk.global/consortium/regions/)). The programme has **six programme regions** and **fifteen planned hubs**, coordinated by GCRI as Consortium Secretariat. Regional work examines cross-border dependencies "with compatible methods, without merging national data or authority".

**Boundary.** No regional body binds a country. A hub "is never an office or an exclusive territory. It operates only once its host decision is on record." Today all six regions are in formation and no hub is operating.

## The six regions

| Region                          | Planned hubs                                 | State        |
| ------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------- | ------------ |
| Africa                          | Senegal, Kenya, South Africa                 | In formation |
| Asia and the Pacific            | India, Singapore, Japan                      | In formation |
| Europe and Eurasia              | United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, Türkiye | In formation |
| Latin America and the Caribbean | Brazil                                       | In formation |
| Middle East and North Africa    | United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia           | In formation |
| North America                   | Canada, United States                        | In formation |

Source: [Six programme regions](https://therisk.global/consortium/regions/). Regions describe relationships, not territory. North African states take part in both Africa and the Middle East and North Africa, and Mexico in both North America and Latin America and the Caribbean. The 193 UN member states and the two observer states are in scope for research coverage and formation enquiries ([Countries and research profiles](https://therisk.global/consortium/countries/)).

**On record today.**

* The Consortium Secretariat seat is GCRI Canada, Toronto. No other regional host is recorded.
* Three named programmes are in formation: the East Asia Nexus Consortium, the Eurasia Nexus Consortium and the Canada Nexus Consortium, each with a public programme page published by GRA.
* Fifteen hubs are planned; none is operating.
* Six regional desks receive mail and give each enquiry a reference.

The six-region register is the current record. Earlier pages of this documentation that count ten or five regions, or describe regional headquarters and global anchors, are being reconciled with it.

## Coverage is not formation

Three things are kept apart, each with its own record ([Programme status](https://therisk.global/consortium/programme-status/)):

* A **research coverage profile** describes a country in research scope. It is not a constituted consortium or a local office.
* A **planned hub** is a coordination role. It is not an operational site, an office or an exclusive territory.
* A **named programme in formation** is a programme with a formation dossier under way. It is not yet constituted.

## Regional Nexus Consortiums

A **Regional Nexus Consortium (RNC)** coordinates the [National Nexus](/organization/governance-in-operation/national-nexus.md) programmes of a region on what they share. Its work is to:

* compare compatible evidence on shared systems, such as river basins, power grids, health systems, ports and corridors ([Cross-border risk systems](https://therisk.global/consortium/regions/shared-systems/));
* support the regional profiles of [Nexus Reports](/organization/programme/reports.md), published twice a year in Q2 and Q4, which "never override a country's own findings" (pillar model; see [The programme year](/organization/programme/the-programme-year.md));
* for the standards, under the proposed [Nexus Standards](/organization/institutions/nexus-standards.md) working model: hold regional profiles where the national councils of the region ask for one, run the election of the regional seat on the Global Standards Council, support jurisdictions not yet activated, and provide the regional mediator in a national escalation (decision DR-25; see [Decision rights](/organization/governance-in-operation/decision-rights.md)).

The legal form and cadence of an RNC are not yet set; they are to be set by the terms of reference of each regional consortium. An RNC holds no authority over a national programme.

**Regional councils** are in formation. "Regional leadership roles are in formation; scope is published only once adopted" ([Council architecture](https://globalriskforum.com/leadership/council-model/)). Under subsidiarity, a regional council takes up a question only when it crosses borders.

## Why regional comparison matters

Infrastructure failures cascade across borders. Interdependent systems turn local shocks into regional ones (Rinaldi, Peerenboom and Kelly, 2001; Buldyrev et al., 2010). The OECD (2019) documents the shift from protecting assets to building the resilience of whole systems across jurisdictions. Regional comparison with shared methods, and without merging data, is how the programme answers that shift while keeping each country's authority intact.

## Earlier texts

* [Consortiums model: regional](/organization/cooperation/consortiums/model/v.-regional.md) (regional bases and anchors, earlier region counts)
* [Regional Nexus Consortium (definition 2.20)](/organization/organization/architecture/ii.-definitions/xx.-regional-nexus-consortium-rnc.md)
* [Regional Nexus Financing for Development (definition 2.17)](/organization/organization/architecture/ii.-definitions/xvii.-regional-nexus-financing-for-development-rnfd.md), read with [Finance readiness](/organization/finance-readiness.md)

## Sources

* Buldyrev, S. V., Parshani, R., Paul, G., Stanley, H. E. and Havlin, S. (2010). Catastrophic cascade of failures in interdependent networks. *Nature*, 464, 1025–1028. [doi:10.1038/nature08932](https://doi.org/10.1038/nature08932)
* OECD (2019). *Good Governance for Critical Infrastructure Resilience*. OECD Reviews of Risk Management Policies. [oecd.org](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/good-governance-for-critical-infrastructure-resilience_02f0e5a0-en.html)
* Rinaldi, S. M., Peerenboom, J. P. and Kelly, T. K. (2001). Identifying, understanding, and analyzing critical infrastructure interdependencies. *IEEE Control Systems Magazine*, 21(6), 11–25. [doi:10.1109/37.969131](https://doi.org/10.1109/37.969131)
* GCRI: [Six programme regions](https://therisk.global/consortium/regions/); [Cross-border risk systems](https://therisk.global/consortium/regions/shared-systems/); [Countries and research profiles](https://therisk.global/consortium/countries/); [Programme status](https://therisk.global/consortium/programme-status/).
* GRF: [Council architecture](https://globalriskforum.com/leadership/council-model/).
* [Sources library](/organization/reference/sources.md).


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