Vilashini Somiah is an anthropologist who is a senior lecturer at the Gender Studies Programme at Universiti Malaya. She received her PhD from the National University of Singapore, an MA from Ohio University, an MRes from Universiti Malaya and a BA from the Universiti Malaya. She maintains a keen interest for underrepresented narratives of women, migrants and Borneans living in the interiors. She is the co-editor of “Sabah From the Ground: The 2020 Elections and the Politics of Survival (SIRD/ISEAS, 2021), and her first book, “Irregular Migrants and the Sea at the Borders of Sabah, Malaysia: Pelagic Alliance'' with Palgrave Macmillan (TBC 2022). Outside of academia, she writes ethnographic articles on the local socio-political landscape.

Dr. Nurul Shahnaz Ahmad Mahdzan is a Professor and served as the Head at the Department of Finance, Faculty of Business & Economics, University of Malaya from 2019-2023. She obtained her PhD from the Nottingham University Business School, UK; MBA (with Distinction) from the University of Malaya; and BBA (Finance) (Summa Cum Laude) from Ohio University, USA. Her research passion is in the area of Consumer Finances, particularly on the issues of financial behaviour and economic psychology of households - this includes their financial literacy, financial well-being, fintech adoption, financial attitudes, saving behaviour, investment risk-taking behaviour, and gullibility to financial fraud victimisation. She also has an interest in studies related to the financial services industry, particularly in insurance and risk management. Her current research project involves FinTech usage among millenials and the Gen X's and how this impacts financial well-being. Recently, she was invited as a Plenary Speaker at the National Financial Literacy Symposium (NFLS 2023) to share her views on the state of financial literacy and financial well-being among Malaysians. She has also appeared in numerous national TV, radio and print media where her views on personal finance and economic issues have been sought. She has been appointed as a panel of assessor for the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) research grants since year 2020 to date. Additionally, she has been invited to speak on several local industrial platforms on the topic of Consumer Finances. She has been invited as guest speaker at international symposiums and platforms that discuss financial and economic issues pertaining to the Malaysian context. Her deep interest and engagement in the area of Consumer Finances stems from her ten-year experience working in financial services, where she mainly dealt with consumers and their personal finances. It was then that her passion the area began and continues till today, as reflected in her research, publications and other activities.  

Siti Aishah is a language lecturer at the Department of English Language, Faculty of Languages and Linguistics, Universiti Malaya. She has more than a yearlong experience as an educator in the English language field, supported with a Master’s degree in English Language Studies (MELS) and a Bachelor’s degree of Arts English from the prestigious University of Malaya. Concurrently, she is undergoing a scholarly publication journey centralising on Online Language Learning. Her expertise involves teaching English related courses, covering both proficiency and major programmes. She also has impeccable tutorship experience, guiding TESL graduating students in completing their research paper. She hopes to continue adopting collaborative and engaging teaching approaches via digital teaching and learning tools and applications to challenge language learners in using language to connect and grow with full confidence.