APIGA 2026
Join APIGA to set yourself on the path to shape the future of the Internet!
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APIGA2026 Program | APIGA2026 Participants | APIGA2026 Photos |
About the Asia Pacific Internet Governance Academy (APIGA) |
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The Asia Pacific Internet Governance Academy (APIGA) is a capacity-development program focused on Internet governance targeted at youths aged 18-35 from the Asia Pacific (APAC) region. APIGA is co-hosted by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and the Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA). It is organized in collaboration with regional organizations including the Asia Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC), DotAsia Organisation, the Internet Society (ISOC), etc. Aims APIGA aims to develop youth leaders’ understanding of the Internet and its ecosystem. It also aims to equip participants with the knowledge and skills to participate in Internet policy making through developing a strong foundation in the following:
Learning is through immersive, hands-on sessions with dedicated mentoring by regional industry experts. Participants will also build a strong network with peers, APIGA alumni, leading APAC Internet organizations, and key APAC community leaders. Expected Outcomes Through the program, participants will build confidence in and appreciation for multistakeholder processes with a strong foundation in Internet governance fundamentals. They will also receive guided pathways to continue participating in the Internet governance space including at ICANN, APNIC, ISOC, the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), and various other Internet governance fora. Past data shows that 1 in 4 APIGA alumni continue to participate in Internet governance fora locally, regionally, and globally. About the 2026 Program Important Information & Key Dates APIGA2026 is targeted to be held in July 2026 at South Korea (details to be announced). Individuals interested in Internet governance issues are welcome to apply. Flight and accommodation costs will be covered for selected participants. Local and Regional APIGA Starting 2024, the APIGA program has expanded to the local level, held as Local APIGA events. For Cycle 2 (October 2025-April 2026), 9 Local APIGA events are held. These local events have been designed to complement the Regional APIGA2026 program. More information available here. For general enquiries about APIGA, please write to apachub@icann.org. |
How to Apply for APIGA2026 |
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Participants will be selected through the following three avenues. (1) Open Application Portal Submit an application through the open application portal, applications are targeted to open in March 2026 (details to be announced). Application Criteria
Selection of suitable candidates will be conducted by a selection committee comprised of representatives from the co-hosts and partner organizations. (2) Local APIGA Admissions With the APIGA program expansion, the top participant selected from each Local APIGA event will be directly eligible for the Regional APIGA2026. Local APIGA hosts may also choose to fund one additional participant from Local APIGA events if they wish to. Local APIGA participants who were not selected as top participants may still apply for the Regional APIGA2026 through the open application portal above. (3) Funded Participants by Partner Organizations APAC Internet organizations (e.g. the Asia Pacific Top Level Domain Association (APTLD)) may fund participants selected through their internal processes. There is a maximum of 10 funded participant slots for APIGA2026 (limit for each organization to be confirmed). Please write to apachub@icann.org if your organization is interested to fund a participant. |
About the Hosts
Korea Internet & Security Agency, KISA
KISA is a government agency dedicated to promoting Internet and information security and contributing to Korea’s Global Competitiveness.
KISA has set ‘Internet Promotion’ for the future and ‘Information Security’ for our safety as its primary tasks, and is focusing on enhancing the information security capacity of Korea’s ICT industry while expanding global cooperative partnerships based on the K-ICT Security development Strategy, in order that these twin pillars may serve as the core competencies of the future Korea in equal and harmonious measure.
KISA, founded in 2009 through a merger of three separate organizations, is dedicated to developing Korea’s Internet industry and information security capabilities. As an Internet and security promotion agency armed with global competitiveness, KISA will maintain its commitment to creating a safe and happy Internet world.
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, ICANN
ICANN’s mission is to help ensure a stable, secure and unified global Internet. To reach another person on the Internet, you have to type an address into your computer – a name or a number. That address has to be unique so computers know where to find each other. ICANN helps coordinate and support these unique identifiers across the world.
ICANN was formed in 1998 as a not-for-profit public-benefit corporation and a community with participants from all over the world. ICANN and its community help keep the Internet secure, stable and interoperable. It also promotes competition and develops policy for the top-level of the Internet’s naming system and facilitates the use of other unique Internet identifiers.
ICANN doesn't control content on the Internet. It cannot stop spam and it doesn't deal with access to the Internet. But through its coordination role of the Internet's naming system, it does have an important impact on the expansion and evolution of the Internet.