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).

Dr. Mohd Khairi bin Ismail is a respected Malaysian economist, researcher, and academic who currently serves as a Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Business and Management, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Cawangan Terengganu. With over 15 years of experience in higher education and research, Dr. Khairi has made significant contributions in the fields of development economics, environmental economics, and poverty studies. He is also a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Ungku Aziz Centre for Development Studies (UAC), University of Malaya—an institution known for championing inclusive and sustainable development research. A First-Class Honours graduate in Economics from Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM), Dr. Khairi later earned his PhD in Environment and Development (Economics) from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). His academic journey reflects a deep commitment to interdisciplinary research addressing socio-economic issues affecting the B40 community, urban poverty, and sustainable livelihoods. His scholarly work has been published in more than 60 journals, proceedings, and book chapters, with multiple publications indexed in Scopus and Web of Science (WoS).  Dr. Khairi has received numerous recognitions and academic awards, including the best paper award and multiple gold medals for innovation in research and teaching. His policy-based research has received grants from national research bodies, especially in projects related to community well-being, Islamic social finance, and urban resilience. In addition, he is an editorial board member for SAGE Open and reviewer for several national and international journals. His expertise has also earned him frequent invitations to media appearances, both in print and broadcast. Dr. Khairi has been featured on RTM and RTM Radio, offering expert commentary on national issues such as the cost of living, national budget, SST vs GST, and inflation. He has also contributed opinion pieces and interviews to major newspapers including Berita Harian, Utusan Malaysia, Sinar Harian, and The Star. His media engagements are characterized by a balanced, data-driven, and policy-relevant approach that bridges the gap between academia and the public.

  Dr. Vilashini Somiah is a feminist anthropologist from Sabah, Malaysia, and Senior Lecturer at the Gender Studies Programme at Universiti Malaya. She earned her Ph.D. from the National University of Singapore, an MA from Ohio University, an MRes from Universiti Malaya, and a BA from Universiti Malaya. Her research focuses on underrepresented narratives of women, migrants, and Borneans living in the interiors. She co-edited Revisiting Covid-19 in Malaysia: Plight and Perseverance (UM Press, 2023) and Sabah from the Ground: The 2020 Elections and the Politics of Survival (SIRD/ISEAS, 2021). Her first single-authored book, Irregular Migrants and the Sea at the Borders of Sabah, Malaysia: Pelagic Alliance (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022), won the Universiti Malaya Award for Outstanding Achievement (ACUM) for Best Social Science Book of 2022 and has received international acclaim and reviews. Dr Somiah is currently working on her fourth book which explores the lives and resilience of Bornean women.  In 2024, Dr. Somiah was a Saw Swee Hock Southeast Asia Centre Visiting Fellow at the London School of Economics, supported by the Henry Luce Foundation and SEANNET. In 2025, she was appointed a Harvard Asia Centre Associate (2025-2026) https://asiacenter.harvard.edu/vilashini-somiah . That same year, she was elected to the Southeast Asia Council at the Association for Asian Studies (AAS) in the United States, a position she will hold until 2028  https://www.asianstudies.org/about/governance/councils/southeast-asia-council-seac/.  Beyond academia, she writes ethnographic articles on Malaysia’s socio-political landscape. To learn more about her work, visit www.vilashinisomiah.com.   Dr. Somiah is NO LONGER accepting PhD students. Please however consider contacting other members of the Gender Studies Programme for potential supervision.