Two previous international meetings laid the groundwork for the establishment of an International Hurricane Research Network, with a focus on the Caribbean and Central America. We propose to expand the geographic focus of this nascent network to include scientists from other regions (Asia, Pacific Islands, Australia) where high-energy storms play an important role in structuring ecosystems. Our aim is to establish a self-sustaining multidisciplinary network that will foster comparison among regions and synthesis of understanding about the environmental consequences of high-energy storms. More specifically we will build on a conceptual framework established in previous meetings to advance understanding of how resistance, resilience, and vulnerability of ecosystems to these disturbances vary along environmental gradients such as productivity and biodiversity. We expect to discover complementary studies from other regions and to establish a collaborative mechanism for enhancing the depth and breadth of future research.