The Research Software Engineering (RSE) Asia Association started as a project in Cohort 4 of the Open Life Science Programme in the year 2021. Since its launch, the RSE Asia Association has been deeply influenced by the Open Science principles. In this talk, we highlight how the Open Life Science programme helped us shape the RSE Asia Association and the benefits we derived by building a community based on Open Science principles. We will also highlight the journey and future plans of the RSE Asia Association.