Positively responding to the guidance thought of international cooperation of Chinese Academy of Sciences, IMHE develops the international cooperation strategy which is composed of south Asia strategy, ASEAN strategy, Japan and R. Korea Strategy, European and American strategy, and international organization strategy, to promote the influence of IMHE in the world. 

Since 1980s, IMHE has cooperated with more than 40 countries and regions, such as USA, Japan, USSR, German, Canada, Spain, and Venezuela, and signed nearly 20 MOU. Currently, IMHE houses 5 international cooperation platforms, such as the Chinese Committee on ICIMOD, Sino-Nepal Joint Research Centre for Geography, Sino- Italy Joint Laboratory, Asian Network on Debris Flow, and South Asia Science and Technology Cooperation Network, prepares to establish the China-Pakistan Joint Research Centre on Earth Sciences (CPJRC) at Islamabad, Pakistan. More than 80 joint projects, 30 training courses and conferences have been accomplished, including over 1,000 person-times of short-term visiting. In recent years, IMHE has hosted several international conferences, by which it has gained more and more concerns and reputation at home and abroad. By far an international cooperative channel has been built and more trials for further collaborations are under discussions.