The Asia Society was founded in 1956 by John D Rockefeller 3rd in New York to foster understanding between Asians and Americans. Today the Asia Society excels in informing the public debate on Asia and Asia-Pacific relations. The Asia Society is headquartered in New York, with regional centres in Hong Kong, Houston, Los Angeles, Manila, Melbourne, Mumbai, San Francisco, Seoul, Shanghai and Washington DC.

The Asia Society AustralAsia Centre was launched in May 1997 by the Prime Minister of Australia. The AustralAsia Centre is a non-profit, non-governmental organisation which leverages the long-established reputation and networks of the Asia Society to broaden interest and understanding in Australia of Asian countries and their politics, business and culture. The AustralAsia Centre does this by bringing to Australia, access to an extensive network of prominent Asia engaged individuals built up by the Asia Society over the last 50 years, and by running an extensive public programme of business, foreign policy and cultural events.

The AustralAsia Centre has established an Advisory Council, which comprises some 40 individuals prominent in the Asian field representing leaders of business, foreign policy, academia and the arts. The Centre is able to draw on their expertise to ensure programming and activities remain relevant.

Asia Society AustralAsia Centre activities include:

• Providing speaking platforms for political and business leaders visiting from the AustralAsian region
  
• Organising private meetings for visiting dignitaries and the AustralAsia Centre's corporate membership
  
• Offering business and public policy lectures, seminars and briefing programmes
  
• Offering programming on cultural and social issues, as well as co-organising exhibitions, conducting symposia, sponsoring Asian art related publications amongst other activities
  

The Centre has a proud record of hosting internationally distinguished guests including:

• The Hon. Madeleine Albright, then US Secretary of State
• The Hon. Fidel Ramos, former President, Republic of the Philippines
• Lee Kuan Yew, then Senior Minister, Republic of Singapore
• Mr Rupert Murdoch, Chairman & Chief Executive, News Corporation
• H.E. Junichiro Koizumi, then Prime Minister of Japan
• H.E. Dr Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, President of Indonesia
• H.E. Dato’ Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Prime Minister of Malaysia
• H.E. Mr Phan Van Khai, then Prime Minister of Vietnam
• H.E. General Pervez Musharraf, President of Pakistan
• H.E. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, President of the Republic of the Philippines

The Centre has also co-presented two major art exhibitions – "Traditions & Tensions" – contemporary Asian art in Perth, 1998, and "Treasures of Asian Art" in Melbourne and Sydney, in 1999. In August 2002 the Centre launched its first Australia-Developed art exhibition “Crossing Boundaries - Bali: a Window to Twentieth Century Indonesian Art.