Professor Dr Hong Ching Goh, an interdisciplinary social scientist, studies human-environment interactions. Initially focused on urban planning and nature-based tourism, her approach has evolved to encompass sustainability, relevance, inclusion, and impact of scales. Her research inquiry explores how diverse communities benefit from nature, e.g., livelihood, health and wellbeing and intangible values. She investigates the threats and constraints posed by various anthropogenic actions and governance systems on the environment, and devises strategies for its safeguarding. This focus stems from her academic training in urban planning, tourism planning, and geography. Her research, with wide-ranging applications in urbanized environments, resource-rich regions and protected areas, draws inspiration from her fieldwork in Sabah since 2005, which has then driven her interdisciplinary coastal research in Southeast Asia. Currently attached to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Faculty of Built Environment, Prof. Goh also leads the Humanities and Social Sciences Group of the Malaysia National Antarctic Research Centre. She's a registered town planner with the Malaysian Institute of Planners and the Board of Town Planners Malaysia.  Prof Goh serves as the country coordinator for ForUm, a DAAD-funded network for Urban Futures in Southeast Asia that connects SEA and German experts since 2018. She also continues to serve on GYA membership selection and output review committees. Her commitment to interdisciplinary research has been significantly influenced by being a recipient of the MIT-UTM Malaysian Sustainable Cities Program Fellowship and the DAAD Doctoral Scholarship Awards where she conducted her doctoral study in the Center of Development Research (ZEF), as well as her memberships in ASEAN Science Leadership Program and Global Young Academy (GYA).  Since 2009, she has secured RM6.9 million in research grants, including RM4.95 million internationally. As a co-investigator, she helped secure the GBP6.4 million Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) grant. Her contributions to interdisciplinary research, particularly in marine environments and coastal communities, have earned recognition. This recognition was highlighted by the British High Commission in Kuala Lumpur in 2021, in conjunction with International Women's Day and Commonwealth Day. In the same year, she was invited to join the UK Minister of Science, Amanda Solloway, and Professor Melanie Austen (University of Plymouth, UK) to discuss climate change impacts on marine environments and coastal communities in the Blue Communities program. In 2022, she was featured among the '100 Women Scientists in Global Polar Research. In 2024, she is appointed as the DAAD Research Ambassador in Malaysia in recognition of her outstanding contribution towards furthering the academic & scientific cooperation between Malaysia and Germany and awarded the Top Research Scientists Malaysia Award by the Academy of Sciences Malaysia.   To date, she has published more than 65 peer-reviewed articles, 30 book chapters and books, and other 40 publications. She has supervised nine PhD students and three master students to completion and oversees 10 ongoing students. 

Dr. Lani is a viral immunologist and a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya. She received her Bachelor's degree in Biomedical Sciences (2012), Master’s in Medical Science (by research; 2016), and Ph.D. in Virology from Universiti Malaya, Malaysia (2022). Dr. Lani's research interests focus on understanding the immune response to viral infections, with a particular emphasis on developing novel therapeutic and vaccine strategies for infectious diseases. She has published extensively in high-impact scientific journals, including Nature, Elsevier, and MDPI, and is also an active scientific reviewer and guest editor. She is committed to promoting high-quality scientific research and has been recognized for her contributions to the field with numerous awards and honors. She earned critical certifications from the One Health Workforce Academies, Rice University (USA), UC San Diego (USA), The John Hopkins University (USA), and the University of Rochester (USA).

I am Erma Rahayu Mohd Faizal Abdullah, the Head of the Department of Artificial Intelligence at Universiti Malaya. My passion lies in advancing the fields of computer vision, machine learning, and their applications in areas such as healthcare, education, and manufacturing. As an academic, I’ve had the privilege of shaping the AI curriculum at Universiti Malaya, including designing courses like Artificial Intelligence: Principles & Techniques and NextGen Software Development. My goal is to ensure students are equipped with the knowledge and skills to thrive in the evolving AI landscape. My research focuses on solving real-world problems through AI. One of my proudest projects is UMFit, a real-time monitoring app for cardiac patients that aims to improve healthcare accessibility and reduce clinical burdens. I’m also actively involved in using CBCT data for dentistry research and collaborating with Perodua to enhance automation and quality systems in manufacturing. Ethical AI is a significant part of my work. As an IEEE CertifAIEd™ Authorized Assessor, I focus on promoting algorithmic fairness, transparency, and privacy. I also apply explainable AI (XAI) tools, such as SHAP, to ensure my AI models are interpretable and trustworthy. Education is my passion, and I strive to empower students with high-order thinking skills and innovative approaches to learning. I also enjoy collaborating with international scholars, such as hosting Nishitani Aoi from Ehime University, and incorporating dynamic topics like intelligent agents and Data Intelligence into the curriculum. I strongly believe in building bridges between academia and industry. Collaborations with global leaders like Zhipu AI and Alto AI have brought valuable resources to my department, ensuring we remain at the forefront of AI research and innovation. I am driven by a vision of creating impactful AI solutions and nurturing the next generation of AI experts. My journey continues to be fueled by curiosity, collaboration, and a commitment to ethical innovation.