Professor Kulenthran Arumugam is a Malaysian national, born on January 30th 1949.  He is married and has two children.  He graduated from University of Singapore Medical School in 1975 and completed his internship at the University Hospital Kuala Lumpur.  After serving 2 years as a Lecturer in the Department of Anatomy, University of Malaya he commenced his career in Obstetrics and Gynaecology as a Registrar in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University Hospital, Kuala Lumpur and at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland for two years before sitting for and passing the Membership Examination to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists  (MRCOG), London at its first attempt in January 1982.(He was elevated to a Fellow of the Royal College in 1995). He resumed his Academic and Clinical career as a Lecturer in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Malaya Medical Centre in 1982.  He rapidly rose through the ranks and was appointed Associate Professor and Consultant in 1986 and to Professor and Senior Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologistin 1991. He was elevated to a Fellow of Academy of Medicine of Malaysia in 2008 In 2003 he found his niche in Clinical Epidemiology having read the Post Graduate Diploma in Epidemiology from the London School of Hygiene.  Completing his tenure in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, in 2008 he moved to Head the Research Development Unit of the Faculty in order to guide the Faculty Staff into Research in the Clinical Sciences. Also, because of his legal expertise in having read the LLB Hons (Lond), he teaches Health Law, Ethics and professional development to the Faculty. However he continues to keep in touch with Clinical Medicine with his colleagues in the Clinical Departments. Since his retirement from the University Malaya in 2015 he continues, as Professor Kehormat, to teach in the Faculty, Health Law, Ethics, and Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Furthermore, as a Consultant to the Research Training Unit of the Faculty he guides and trains the medical officers and academic staff in clinical research.  

Fumitaka Furuoka is a Japanese economist who has lived in Malaysia since 1987. From 1991 to 1999, he worked as a senior assistant at the Consulate General of Japan in Penang. Fumitaka then moved to academia and has taught economics for 25 years at three Malaysian public universities, namely, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, and Universiti Malaya. His academic expertise is in the field of applied economics which involves applying economic and econometric theories to address real-world critical economic issues and problems. As an applied economist, he aims to provide insights from his research for hammering out effective policies that foster sustainable development, enable a reduction of regional disparities, and move society towards achieving economic and social justice.  In his research in the field of applied economics, he focuses on economic equity between countries (i.e., the problem of inequality of economic development level in different countries), as well as economic equity within countries (i.e., the problem of inequality of income distribution in a specific country). Regarding economic equity between countries, he has conducted extensive research on diverse and pertinent global economic issues, such as poverty reduction, unemployment, economic growth/development, and renewable energy. In 2006, he published a book on Japanese foreign aid titled New Challenges for Japan’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) Policy. The book examines how Japan’s aid policy can contribute to reducing poverty and improving the well-being of developing countries, particularly Southeast Asian economies. As to economic equity within countries, the main focus of Fumitaka's research is promoting “employment for all” which is closely aligned with Target 8 of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He strongly believes that employment for all, including people with disabilities, is the basic foundation for a sustainable and more humane economy (Ekonomi Madani). This belief has led him to write a book on employment for people with disabilities entitled Disability and Employment: Towards a Humanistic Economy. The book was published by Springer in 2024. This research direction has a strong practical orientation, and Fumitaka considers work in this area to be of ultimate importance for achieving economic equity and providing employment opportunities to people with disabilities. In short, his research aims to identify barriers and initiate policies that promote and enable economic inclusion, employment, and justice for all.

Zulhelmi Amir, a researcher and senior lecturer attached to the Department of Chemical Engineering, Universiti Malaya, Malaysia since 2020.  He received B.Eng in Chemical Engineering from Yamagata University (Japan) in 2011, MEng.Sc in Chemical Engineering from Universiti Malaya in 2016 and completed his PhD in Petroleum Engineering from Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS in 2020. He is currently teaching Chemical Engineering undergraduate courses including Engineering Drawing, Integrated Design and Field Processing and Treatment of Natural Gas. His research interests are oilfield water control, conformance control, polymer gel for oil and gas applications, completion and drilling fluids and flow assurance. He has published technical papers in ISI indexed journals and presented papers in international conferences including Society of Petroleum Engineers organized conferences. Zulhelmi can be reached at zulhelmi.amir@um.edu.my.