Khoo Ying Hooi, PhD, is an Associate Professor of International Relations and Human Rights at Universiti Malaya (UM). Her research centres on human rights and democracy in Southeast Asia, with a particular focus on civil society, Southeast Asian politics, and the domestic politics of Malaysia and Timor-Leste. She also examines how the geopolitics of Southeast Asia shapes domestic political developments, rights discourses, civic spaces, and institutional contestations. In addition, she works extensively on human rights education and academic freedom. She is the author of “The Bersih Movement and Democratisation in Malaysia” (SIRD/ ISEAS/ Lexington Books, 2020) and “Seeds of Dissent (Gerakbudaya, 2015). Furthermore, Ying Hooi has also co-edited several volumes, such as “Social and Political Deglobalisation: Covid-19, Conflict and Uncertainties in Malaysia (Palgrave Macmillan, 2023), “Marginalisation and Human Rights in Southeast Asia” (Routledge, 2022) and “Rethinking Human Rights and Peace in the Post-Independence Timor-Leste through Local Perspectives” (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022). Her co-author paper (with C. Leong, I. Faik, F. Tan and B. Tan, 2020), “Digital organising of a global social movement: from connective to collective action," won the 2021 Best Paper Award at the Information and Organization and was Runner-Up in the 2021 Special Interest Group-Grounded Theory Methodology (SIG-GTM).  Ying Hooi is the Editor-in-Chief of the Malaysian Journal of International Relations (MJIR) and sits on the Editorial Boards of the Journal of Current Southeast Asian Affairs, the Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights (JSEAHR), and the Indonesian Law Review (ILREV).  Ying Hooi has been appointed to the International Advisory Council by the Timor-Leste government for Centro Nacional Chega! (CNC), a public institute tasked to institutionalise memory and promote human rights. She is also a founding member of the Southeast Asian Coalition for Academic Freedom (SEA-CAF). She received several fellowships, including the Mellon/ SAR Academic Freedom Fellowship by Scholars at Risk (SAR), the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict (ICNC) Curriculum Fellowship, and visiting fellowships at Kyushu University, Mahidol University, Humboldt University of Berlin and Beijing Foreign Studies University. She has served as a judge in several local and international human rights awards, including the Amnesty International Philippines Ignite Awards and Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM) Human Rights Awards. Between 2013 and 2016, Ying Hooi was involved in the diplomatic training course for the Institute of Diplomatic Studies (IDS), Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation in Timor-Leste. Additionally, she has contributed to consultancies for organisations like the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR), the Democracy Academy of Malaysia, and Strengthening Human Rights and Peace Research and Education in Southeast Asia (SHAPE-SEA). In addition to her academic roles, Ying Hooi has extensive experience in the field of human rights and democracy in Southeast Asia. These roles include serving as a Scientific Member in the Observatory of Political Alternatives in Southeast Asia (ALTERSEA), Vice-Chair in the Society for the Promotion of Human Rights (PROHAM), and Board Member in the Innovation of Change - East Asia Governance Circle (EAGC). Before entering academia, Ying Hooi garnered experience in corporate sectors and served as the Head of International Issues and Cooperation at the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM). Her involvements include the ASEAN human rights body (now AICHR) in the ASEAN Charter, the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) on Malaysia in Geneva and the SUHAKAM Amendment Bill 2009.  

  Dr. Shani Ann Mani graduated in 1995 from The Tamil Nadu Dr.M.G.R Medical University, Chennai, India with a Bachelor in Dental Surgery and in 1998 from the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (Panjab University), Chandigarh, India with a Master of Dental Surgery (Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry). She is also a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons and Physicians of Glasgow. She enjoys teaching having been in academia for more than 22 years, teaching Paediatric Dentistry to undergraduate and postgraduate students. She was appointed the post-graduate coordinator in Paediatric Dentistry at the Faculty of Dentistry, University Malaya since 2014. She has been an external and internal examiner for both undergraduate and postgraduate students during her career. She is also keen in research and has authored about 30 articles published in international and national peer-reviewed journals, majority being indexed in the ISI Web of Science database, and also contributed to chapters in books. She routinely reviews manuscripts for international journals in her field of specialisation and is on the editorial board of the European Archives of Paediatric Dentistry,  Malaysian Journal of Paediatric Dentistry and BMC Oral Health.  She has also obtained research grants pertaining to her research in Paediatric Dentistry over the course of her career. She is a member of the Indian Society of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry and Malaysian Association of Paediatric Dentistry besides other academic associations.    

Muhammad Kashani MOHD KAMIL, born in 1984, is a distinguished medical professional with a comprehensive educational background in medicine and sports medicine. He graduated with his medical degree from Universitas Sumatera Utara in 2011. Furthering his expertise, he obtained a postgraduate Master of Sports Medicine from Universiti Malaya in 2022. Currently, he serves as a medical lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya, while also practicing as a Sports Physician at the Universiti Malaya Medical Centre. Additionally, he is a qualified Occupational Health Doctor. His area of interests are Sports Cardiology, Sports Emergency and eSports. Outside of his professional endeavors, he is an avid sports enthusiast, actively participating in rugby, futsal, and soccer. His medical contributions to rugby are recognized through his attainment of a Level 2 Immediate Care certification from the Malaysia Rugby Union. He has also demonstrated his leadership and organizational skills by successfully hosting and winning several prestigious futsal tournaments.