Asia Society Australia 2020 Strategy Update
Preparing Australian leaders and community for a deeper and sustained engagement with Asia
In 2015, Asia Society Australia embarked on a new strategy – Asia Society Australia 2020 – to transform our organisation into Australia’s most active, innovative and well-recognised centre on Asia and Australia-Asia relations.
We are pleased to report that two years before 2020 we have achieved or exceeded most of the targets we set for ourselves.
- This year we’ll establish Asia Society Centre in Melbourne, in partnership with the Victorian Government, doubling our staff, programs and impact
- Our membership has grown and become more diverse – with some of Australia’s leading companies, universities, government agencies and non-profits a part of our membership network
- Our programming volume has doubled since 2015, and will double again this year, while we strengthen our focus on quality, depth and diversity.
- Our policy impact and reach has grown with the new content projects – Asia Briefing and Disruptive Asia and an active program of direct interactions with political leaders, policy-makers and media
- We are bringing the best of Asia Society’s global programs to Australia – Asia 21, Asia Society Policy Institute and Asia Society Global Centre for Education
- We have been lucky to attract some of Australia’s most experienced and passionate leaders and practitioners of Australia-Asia relations to our Board, Advisory Council and the team
Last year, we took stock of our environment, achievements and challenges and refreshed our strategy. It lifts the level of our ambition, focuses on impact, growth and partnerships, and reflects the changing dynamics in Asia and Australia.
It is our pleasure to share our updated strategy with you, as participants and contributors to our story, and the ever so important Australia-Asia engagement.
Our vision is simple – to be the nation’s leading centre for engagement with Asia in the areas of business, policy and society.
And our task is to prepare our Australian leaders and community for a deeper and sustained engagement with the region, which is more geopolitically contested and economically competitive.
We understand the scale of the challenges ahead – both within our own organisation and our external environment. But we’re confident we can achieve our ambition.
Rarely in Australian history has an understanding of the developments in Asia been so critical to Australian leaders and community at large. Asia Society Australia is well placed to contribute to the national understanding of our region.
Our vision
- Asia Society Australia will be the nation’s leading centre for engagement with Asia in the areas of business, policy and society.
- Asia Society Australia will be recognised for the quality of its insights, intellectual leadership and diverse and distinct programs for its members and the broader community
- Asia Society Australia will be complementary to, and closely integrated with the Asia Society’s global network while retaining a distinct Australian outlook and focus.
Our mission
Our mission is to prepare our Australian leaders and community for a deeper and sustained engagement with Asia.
Our identity
Asia Society Australia is Australia’s leading national centre for engagement with Asia. We are a not-for-profit, non-governmental and non-political organisation empowered by leading Australian and regional business, government, education and cultural institutions.
Asia Society Australia is a centre of Asia Society – a preeminent global non-profit organisation dedicated to Asia, founded in 1956 by John D. Rockefeller 3rd, with centres in New York, Hong Kong, Houston, Los Angeles, Manila, Melbourne, Mumbai, San Francisco, Seoul, Shanghai, Sydney, Tokyo, Washington, DC and Zurich.
Across the fields of arts, business, culture, education, and policy, Asia Society provides insight, generates ideas, and promotes collaboration to address present challenges and create a shared future.
Our strategic goals
- Educate and inform our members and the Australian community about Asia’s politics, economy and society.
- Lead a balanced discussion about, and dive deeper into issues and trends shaping Asia and Australia’s place in it
- Champion and support Australian organisations and leaders’ engagement with Asia and build networks to succeed in our shared future
- Project Australia’s voice on Asia across our global network and beyond
- Bring the best of Asia and Asia Society’s unparalleled global network, insights and convening power to Australia
Our value proposition
Be informed: Asia is a global economic centre of gravity, but is a region of many parts and differences. It is also becoming more strategically contested and economically competitive. We help Australian businesses, government and education organisations understand each country in Asia, its role and impact as a region, and its increasingly complex geopolitical, geoeconomic and business landscapes, so they can make informed decisions and engage effectively with the whole of Asia.
Be connected: By joining Asia Society Australia, you are joining the largest global network of Asia-connected businesses, government and education organisations, and becoming a part of the preeminent global organisation dedicated to Asia, with 15 centres across four continents.
Be driven by purpose: Through your membership, you will be helping to build an Asia-informed and Asia-connected Australia, driving a deeper level of engagement with the region and projecting Australia’s voice in the region and globally.
