Dr. Mohd Zaidi Daud is an Associate Professor in the Department of Syariah and Law at the Academy of Islamic Studies, University of Malaya (UM), where he served as Head of the Department from 2019 to 2025. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Syariah (Islamic Law) with Honours, as well as a Master’s and a PhD in Syariah and Law, all from the University of Malaya. Dr. Mohd Zaidi Daud specializes in Islamic Estate Planning—covering Hibah, Wakaf, Islamic Inheritance, and Islamic Wills—as well as Islamic Banking and Finance, Islamic Social Finance, and Contemporary Islamic Law. Currently, he is the Principal Investigator for a project titled "Management of Islamic Trust Assets at the Baitulmal," funded by the Selangor Islamic Religious Council (GA022-2024), running from September 23, 2024, to March 23, 2025. Dr. Mohd Zaidi Daud is also collaborating internationally with UIN Maulana Malik Ibrahim Malang on the project "Religious Moderation in Higher Education in Indonesia and Malaysia." Previously, he led a Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education-funded project titled "Individual Behaviour in Dealing with Property Distribution Issues: A Study of Muslim Estate Planning" (FP017-2020) under the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS). He has also collaborated on various research initiatives, including projects on Islamic Inheritance Management, Islamic Law Practice in Malaysia, Wakaf financing for higher education, and the role of Muslim women’s NGOs in promoting gender equality in ASEAN. Dr. Mohd Zaidi Daud is an active speaker at national and international conferences. Recent notable presentations include "Legal Frameworks in Islamic Social Finance for Promoting Social Welfare in Malaysia: Aligning with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)" at the International Conference on Law & Justice, UIN Syarif Hidayatullah in Jakarta (September 27, 2024); "Zakat as Islamic Philanthropy in Malaysia: An Overview from a Legal Perspective" at Karabuk University, Turkey (September 29, 2022); and "Legal Aspects and Management of Islamic Philanthropy in Malaysia" at Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (July 25, 2022). He has also recently presented in Vienna, Austria; Malang and Jakarta, Indonesia; and Pattani, Thailand (2024). Previous years included presentations in Salzburg (Austria), Barcelona (Spain), as well as Palembang and Bandung, Indonesia (2023 and 2022, respectively). Beyond teaching and research, Dr. Mohd Zaidi Daud served as a Visiting Scholar at the Center for the Study of the Middle East and Muslim Civilizations, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (August to December 2013), and completed a three-month research fellowship at Cairo University's Kuliyyah Darul Ulum (May to August 2010). His extensive publication record includes articles in national and international journals, contributing significantly to the field of Islamic law. Throughout his career, he has offered expertise to institutions such as JAKIM and MAIS on Islamic law issues and previously served as the Shariah Adviser for ZICOlaw Shariah, providing advisory services to Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation Malaysia Berhad from 2014 to 2016.    

I am currently a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Science and Technology Studies, Faculty of Science, University Malaya; currently teaching Policy and Management of Sustainable Development, Sociology of Science and Research Methodology. My current research interests revolves around: Responsible Research and Innovation: Embedding Reflexivity and Social Desirability for more sustainable outcomes in Research and Innovation; Applied Scientometrics for Decision Making: Tracking and foresighting scientific and technological trends in Sustainable Development for Research Policy and Strategy; and, Science Communication: Studying Stakeholder Engagement in Science and Technology Roadmapping for Sustainable Development. My research expertise focuses on comparative case studies as well as secondary data analysis of policies, research strategies and innovation systems at the sectoral levels for Agriculture (rice, palm oil, etc.), Herbal Medicine, and Renewable Energy (hydrogen, solar, etc.). I have been involved in consultation projects such as the National Bibliometric Report 2015, and STI Indicators Report 2016. I was also the Principal Investigator for the FRGS project on "Feasibility of Smart Agriculture in ASEAN: Investigating Social Dimensions and Policy Mechanisms to Enhance Technology Adoption and Upgrading in the Rice Sector." My previous lecturing experience was in UOW Malaysia KDU University College where I was involved in leading Postgraduate by Research programmes and Research Management. Prior to my PhD, I was in Corporate Communications and Journalism specifically in the Pharma/Biotech sector, as well as in providing Analytics and Media Monitoring services at Meltwater News.  

Dr. Muhamad Alihanafiah bin Norasid is a senior lecturer at the Academy of Islamic Studies, University of Malaya. He was born on 22 May 1987 at Kuala Lumpur General Hospital and is the eldest of twelve siblings. Originally from Johor, he has resided in Dusun Tua, Hulu Langat, Selangor, for over 30 years. He is married and blessed with five children—two boys and three girls. Educational Background Dr. Alihanafiah began his early education at Sekolah Agama Menengah Rawang, Selangor in 2000, before continuing his secondary studies at Sekolah Menengah Agama Kerajaan Johor in Kluang from 2001 to 2004. In 2005, he pursued religious studies at Ma’ahad Johor in Johor Bahru and successfully obtained the Sijil Tinggi Agama Malaysia (STAM). He continued his academic journey at the University of Malaya, earning a Bachelor of Usuluddin (Al-Quran and Al-Hadith) from 2006 to 2009. He then pursued a PhD in the field of Thematic Quranic Interpretation and Human Capital Development at the same university from 2010 to 2016. He also attended a one-month Arabic language enhancement course at Cairo University, Egypt in 2008, and a three-month research methodology course at The World Islamic Sciences and Education University in Amman, Jordan in 2012. Academic Career Dr. Alihanafiah has been serving as a lecturer at the Academy of Islamic Studies, University of Malaya since 2017, and currently holds the position of Senior Lecturer. With over eight years of academic experience, he has demonstrated strong commitment to teaching and research, particularly in the field of Quran and Hadith studies. Leadership and Involvement Since his student days, Dr. Alihanafiah has actively engaged in various leadership and co-curricular activities. He served as Chairman of the Student Committee, Department of Quran and Hadith (2005–2006), and was a committee member of the Islamic Student Association of the University of Malaya (2004–2005). He also held the position of Advisory Committee Member of the Training and Cadre Unit at YADIM (2020–2021), and served as Chairman of the Youth Bureau (Lajnah Syubban) of the Malaysian Muslim Scholar Association (PUM) from 2017 to 2024. As of 2025, he holds the position of Chairman of the Madrasah Ulama’ Secretariat, also under PUM. Academic Publications and Scholarly Network Dr. Alihanafiah is an active academic in the field of scholarly publishing. He has authored more than 60 academic articles, which have been published in various academic journals, book chapters, and conference proceedings. Additionally, he has presented over 15 research papers at international conferences and seminars. His involvement in research includes delivering presentations as a guest speaker in countries such as Japan, Iran, and Indonesia. He has also participated in research competency courses in Turkey, Thailand, Egypt, Brunei, Japan, Jordan, Qatar, Iran, and other countries. He is recognized as a subject matter expert in the areas of Quranic thought, thematic (Mawdu‘i) interpretation, human capital development, and environmental sustainability from the perspective of the Quran. Academic and Co-Curricular Achievements Dr. Alihanafiah has received various awards and recognitions throughout his academic journey. These include the Cikgu Haji Osman Hassan Book Prize for Best Student at the Academy of Islamic Studies, University of Malaya (2009), the Active Student Award of Residential College 8 (2007), and the Academic Excellence Award of the same college (2007). He also received the University Book Prize for achieving a perfect CGPA (4.00) in three out of six semesters. In the field of debating, he represented the University of Malaya in the Royal Intervarsity Debate Championship (Arabic category) and emerged as First Runner-up in 2007. He also reached the quarterfinals of the ASEAN Debate Championship (Arabic category) in the same year. Additionally, he was the First Runner-up in the Quran Memorization Competition and Islamic Calligraphy Competition (khat) at the university level in 2007 and 2008 respectively.