ABSTRACT
The Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) is one unique instrument created by the members of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) to meet the challenges of the new world order. Apart from the two traditional pillars of international relations—political and economic, ASEF is erected as a third pillar of Asia-Europe cooperation. The founding spirit of ASEF is based on the belief that constant interaction and dialogues are pre-requisites for understanding and respecting the wide range of differences in customs, heritages, values and behaviour. To allow flexibility and most appropriate responses to the needs of civil society, ASEF was established as a not-for-profit foundation instead of an inter-governmental agency. The decision-making body of ASEF is the Board of Governors, comprising 39 high-profile individuals nominated by member governments. Programmes such as the biannual ASEF University, a two-week academic enrichment programme for outstanding undergraduates in Asia and Europe, are designed to encourage intercultural exchange among students from the two regions.
