A series of meetings were held between July and December 2009 with a core team of leaders from The Nippon Foundation of Japan and PEN-International to discuss the creation of an institute on disability and public policy for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). ASEAN, established in 1967, includes the member states of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. The team met in Thailand and Washington, D.C. to begin planning for the creation of this Institute designed to improve the circumstances of persons with disabilities in ASEAN countries. The leadership team included Shuichi Ohno and Akiie Ninomiya from The Nippon Foundation of Japan, James J. DeCaro and E. William Clymer from PEN-International, and Larry Campbell from the International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairment. Team members plan to have the Institute fully operational within five years.