The Association of Asian Social Science Research Councils (AASSREC) is an organization of national social science research councils, academies, and institutes committed to the promotion of regional cooperation in the field of social sciences among Asia-Pacific countries. AASSREC was founded in 1973 at a conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) held in Simla, India. In 1976, AASSREC held its first conference in Tehran, Iran, where its constitution was adopted by the Council’s four founding members: India, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, and Thailand.

The conference was attended by leading social scientists from fourteen countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Laos, Nepal, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. At various times since then, Australia, China, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Pakistan, Russia, and Vietnam have also participated in AASSREC conferences and activities. AASSREC’s organizational structure has evolved over time and important changes were incorporated in its Constitution and By-laws in 1994 and more recently in 1999. As a regional organization of the Social Sciences, AASSREC is an accredited non-government organization maintaining consultative and official relations with UNESCO.

AASSREC seeks to promote:

• Collaborative research among scholars in the region;

• The exchange of scholarly publications and information among Asian social science institutions and individuals; and

• Exchange visits among researchers and scholars from its member-countries.
  

AASSREC'S regular activities include:

• The conduct of biennial general conferences and the publication of conference papers and proceedings;

• The conduct of collaborative research programs on specific problems of common interest to Asia-Pacific countries; and

• The assessment of trends in social science research and teaching in the Asia-Pacific region.

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