DR. ZAITON BINTI AZMAN

Dr. Zaiton Azman is a senior lecturer at the Department of Social Administration and Justice, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Malaya. Her core area of expertise is Criminology. She has been involved in developing and promoting teaching, learning, and research opportunities in the field of criminology and social work. She teaches crime and criminal justice, crime prevention, law and advocacy in human services, and social remedy. Her research interest focuses on crime prevention and community policing programs for children beyond control in Malaysia. She also involves as a consultant team member at National level projects such as Malaysian Social Workers Knowledge and Practice (2018) and Sarawak Well Being Index (2019-2020).    

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PROF. DR. CHE ZARRINA BINTI SA'ARI

Che Zarrina Sa’ari, who graduated from the University of Malaya (Bachelor's and Master's degrees) and Edinburgh University (PhD), is currently the Professor at the Academy of Islamic Studies, University of Malaya, Malaysia, working in the Department of Aqidah and Islamic Thought. She served several times as the Head of the Department of Aqidah and Islamic Thought and as the Deputy Director (Development and Research) at the same Academy, and currently she is the Deputy Director (Research) until December 2024. She was also a visiting scholar at Leiden University (2004) and Edinburgh University (2010). Dr. Che Zarrina’s broad academic and research interests involve Sufism, Islamic Psychospiritual, Islamic Psychotherapy, and Islamic Ethics. She has produced over 300 publications, including books, chapters in books, articles in journals, short articles in mass media, and conference proceedings that were presented nationally and internationally. Dr. Che Zarrina has been invited many times by national as well as international universities to deliver lectures or talks on Islamic Psychospiritual and Psychotherapy. She has also been invited to be a keynote speaker, plenary speaker, or invited speaker in seminars, conferences, and workshops nationally and internationally in her area of expertise. She has presented papers in seminars and conferences and delivered motivational talks as well as religious talks to the public from time to time, and written short articles in magazines and newspapers. Dr. Che Zarrina has produced about 50 master's students and 53 doctorate students in her field. The graduates, national and international, became her successors in the dissemination and enhancement of their expertise and have contributed to the academic world, government, and community, especially in spiritual and mental well-being. In research, she has been awarded about 105 internal and external research grants, for instance, ERGS, FRGS, MAIS Fatwa Research Grant, IIRG, MRUN, JAKIM Fatwa Research Grant, RACE, USM, JAIS Fatwa Research Grant, GP LPPKN, UMRG Project, and UMRG Programme. The outputs of the research could be seen through the graduation of graduate research assistants, publications, curriculum designs, and reviews for new courses or module improvements. In addition, those outputs have also been utilized to assist government institutions. For example, in developing modules, manuals, guidelines, policies, and fatwas. Furthermore, many of the outputs of Islamic Psychospiritual and Psychotherapy have been applied and carried out publicly by the community and non-governmental associations (NGO). To impart this knowledge to the relevant communities, Dr. Che Zarrina has been invited to facilitate the training of the trainers (ToT) workshops and intervention sessions that are usually organized by the government, such as JAKIM, Malaysian Ministry of Health, Jabatan Perpaduan Negara dan Intergrasi Nasional, state religious councils and departments, non-governmental organizations, and the public. In the professional field, based on her expertise and involvement with the stakeholders, she has gained their trust and has been appointed to one of JAKIM’s prestigious committees as an Expert Panel for Aqidah (PPA) with terms of reference to respond to current issues of `aqidah and school of thought in society and give an initial view on the issuance of a fatwa for Muzakarah Jawatankuasa Fatwa, Majlis Kebangsaan Bagi Hal Ehwal Ugama Islam Malaysia (MKI). She has been involved in various committees and has been appointed as an expert panel, among others in Expert Panel for Programme Standards: Islamic Studies by Malaysian Qualification Agency (MQA), Expert Panel of the Field of Aqidah and Sufism, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, Top Management Committee for KSKCare Centre JAKIM, and Dini Curriculum Development for Ministry of Education Malaysia. In academic linkage, Dr. Che Zarrina has been involved as an academic advisor for several local universities, journals editor-in-Chief, advisory board member, member of journal editorial boards, postgraduate external examiner, and member of the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies (BRISMES). She is the Editor in Chief for AFKAR: Journal of Aqidah & Islamic Thought, indexed in WoS-ESCI and SCOPUS. She has also been appointed Editor in Chief for Qalbu: International Journal of Sufism published by PERTAMA, the advisory board for the Journal of Islamic Theology Pakistan and the Journal of Islamic Research Turkey, and has become a reviewer for WoS and SCOPUS journals. She also contributes to society through her involvement with several national and international non-government organizations (NGO) such as the Islamic Psychospiritual Association Malaysia (IPSA) as Deputy President, Majlis Dakwah Negara, Persatuan Kaunseling Syarie Malaysia, and the International Association of Islamic Psychology. She has obtained several certificates as a certified practitioner, such as Psychological First Aid, Mental Health Coach, and Crisis Intervention and Trauma Counseling. Among her significant contributions to the country is her involvement from the beginning in setting up the KSKCare Centre@MTMZA JAKIM which is a community referral center that provides professional and free services to the community.  Since then, she, who leads the Islamic Psychospiritual Team, has always performed training of the trainers (ToT) managed by JAKIM and others for related persons.

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PROFESSOR TPR DR. MELASUTRA BINTI MD DALI

Dr. Melasutra is a Registered Town Planner under the Town Planner Act (Act 538) and also a member of the Malaysian Association of Social Impact Assessment. She has 30 years of experience at the University Malaya as a lecturer at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences and currently in the Faculty of Built Environment. Her teaching subjects are related to urban land use planning, social planning, planning theory, and recreational planning. She has carried out collaborative research with the Nippon Foundation under the purview  of Asean University Network- Disability and Public Policy on research related to the inclusivity learning environment.  The inclusive learning environment study was further extended for the Ministry of Higher Education,Malaysia.  She has published in books, book chapters, and journals and involved in consultation works related to urban planning issues, sustainable development planning, and social impact assessment studies. She has supervised a number of Ph.D. students in the field of sustainable urban governance and planning. Professional Recognition: While serving UM, she was also involved in several state and local agencies planning related matters such as Social Impact Assessment study, Urban Redevelopment, Development Plan studies. She has been appointed as Council Member for Petaling Jaya City Council in 2008-2012 and be part of the One Stop Center committee for planning approval matters.  She has been appointed as Local Agenda 21 committee member and Panel Evaluation member for Anugerah Perdana Komuniti Petaling Jaya.  She also has been appointed as the Public Hearing Panel Committee for City Hall of Kuala Lumpur for the Structure and Local Plan - Review and Alteration process. Currently, she is a Panel Review Member of Melaka Social Impact Study- appointed by PlanMalaysia  Melaka.  In recognition of her involvement and contribution in sustainable planning-related matters at the local level i.e City Council of Petaling Jaya- she has been awarded as one of the recipients of 10 Thematic Champion of Petaling Jaya Sustainable, Smart and Resilient  2030 awards for Learning City  (2022).   

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