Executive Summary · ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community Blueprint

1992 – 4th ASEAN Summit → Call for cooperation in higher education & HRD.
1995 – AUN founded. Today: 30 member universities, Secretariat at Chulalongkorn University (Thailand).
6 Dec 2006 – Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) becomes an AUN member.

AUN USR&S Workshop breakout session, Burapha University 2010

October 2010 – Burapha University, Thailand: Inaugural workshop on “University Social Responsibility & Sustainability from ASEAN-Japan Perspectives”. The core idea:

Participating HEIs agreed: ASEAN higher education must strengthen research, education, and service missions to drive ASEAN community development.

AUN proposed a USR&S Thematic Network as an enabling mechanism. Member universities were invited to host the Secretariat. UKM proposed to host both the 2nd Workshop (May 2011) and the Thematic Network Secretariat – offer graciously accepted by AUN Secretariat.

Key takeaway: UKM leads the USR&S Thematic Network to foster regional cooperation, shared challenges, and collaborative initiatives for poverty reduction + quality of life.

The Roadmap for an ASEAN Community (2009‑2015), launched in 2008, carries the tagline “One Vision, One Identity, One Community”. The ASCC Blueprint directly addresses:

ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) Council Meeting, Sarawak, Malaysia 24 April 2025

UKM as the USR&S Thematic Network Secretariat leverages this blueprint to promote greater regional cooperation among ASEAN HEIs by:

• Identifying the region’s shared challenges and concerns
• Coordinating collaborative initiatives to reduce poverty
• Improving quality of life for the ASEAN community
• Developing a knowledge-based society within the region

This alignment ensures that university social responsibility is not an add‑on but a strategic pillar of ASEAN community building — directly supporting the ASCC goals of equity, sustainability, and people‑centered development.

UKM’s role: Mobilising higher education for real-world impact — from classrooms to communities, across borders.