The Fourth Mid Term Conference of Heads of Universities was hosted by Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand and took place between November 12th and 14th 1997. The occasion brought together heads and representatives of universities and of major national, regional and international bodies whose concern lies with higher education world-wide and in all its manifestations. The purpose of their meeting was to debate the general theme 'The Universities' Responsibilities to Society'. It is a theme which over the past decade has been gathering weight and momentum. Higher education is taking on more students, employing more teachers and researchers and is advancing the frontiers of knowledge at an ever-increasing pace. Included in this publication are all the keynote and plenary addresses which dealt with the three broad sub-themes of the Conference. These are: university and development: anticipating change; universities and the international knowledge enterprise; academic freedom and university autonomy: pre-requisites for the university meeting its responsibilities.