Dr. Fong Chng Saun is a senior lecturer at the Institute for Advanced Studies at Universiti Malaya. He earned his Bachelor's degree in Environmental Science and Technology from University Putra Malaysia in 2016. Recognizing his academic excellence, he was offered the opportunity to pursue a doctoral degree at Universiti Malaya, where he completed his PhD in Environmental Science, specializing in Urban Ecosystem Management, in 2021. Dr. Fong's primary research interest lies in urban ecosystem management with a significant emphasis on the urban heat island effect in tropical cities. His expertise extends to various domains including environmental science and technology, sustainable development, and atmospheric-related research such as air pollution monitoring and its health impacts. His work in these areas has garnered him recognition as a finalist for the Young Scientists Network-Academy of Sciences Malaysia (YSN-ASM) Chrysalis Award in 2020 and a place among the top 100 Scientists of Malaysia in the same year. Beyond his core research, Dr. Fong is proficient in using automated weather stations and IoT systems for continuous environmental monitoring. He has also made significant contributions to outdoor thermal comfort assessments, the study of heat stress and related illnesses, 3D urban microclimate modeling and simulation, air quality assessment, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), environmental pollution assessment, and climate resilience and adaptation. Dr. Fong has been prolific in his academic contributions, regularly publishing technical research articles, reviews, books, and book chapters in reputable journals. He serves as an invited reviewer for high-impact journals such as Science of the Total Environment, Sustainable Cities and Society, Energy & Buildings, Sustainability, and Urban Science. His notable research projects include studies on the urban heat island phenomenon in tropical cities, evaluating walkability indices to promote sustainable transportation at Universiti Malaya, and spearheading a carbon neutrality acceleration initiative centered on greenhouse gas emission analytics. Currently, he is involved in the NIHR Global Health Research Unit on Respiratory Health (RESPIRE) Air Quality Study, which explores the impact of environmental and air quality indicators on asthma health outcomes in Greater Kuala Lumpur. Dr. Fong is also deeply involved in the field of planetary health, addressing the interconnections between human health and the health of our planet. His research on future cities focuses on creating sustainable urban environments that can withstand the challenges of climate change and urbanization. This includes investigating the effects of urban design and greening on human health and the environment, developing strategies for urban heat mitigation, and promoting resilience and adaptation to extreme weather events. He is currently leading the Institute for Advanced Studies-Universiti Malaya Planetary Health (IAS-UMPH) as Program Director.  In addition to his research, Dr. Fong actively collaborates with various governmental bodies, private sectors, NGOs, and researchers from local and international universities. His dedication to the field of atmospheric technology has earned him membership in the Malaysian Board of Technologists. He is also a member of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities' Sustainable Urban Design Working Group and the Landscape and Human Health Working Group. He is also appointed as the Living Labs coordinator under Universiti Malaya Sustainable Development Center and a member of the Universiti Malaya Climate Change Committee for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES). Dr. Fong welcomes all forms of collaboration, especially those closely linked to urban sustainability and well-being, aiming to foster healthier and more sustainable future cities.

Mohammad Nazri is an associate professor in the Faculty of Business and Economics, Universiti Malaya. He obtained his Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) from the University Technology MARA (UiTM), MBA and BBA from the National University of Malaysia (UKM). He had almost 12 years of professional experience with RHB Investment Bank. His research interests include management, supply chain, leadership, and strategic management. Human Capital, Business Ethics, and Islamic Perspectives in Business are among his teaching specialties. He published several books as well as more than 90 research articles in WOS, ESCI, Scopus, and other refereed journals. His research grants included those from the University Malaya Research Grant (UMRG), Kementerian Pelajaran Malaysia (KPM), Long-Term Research Grant (LRGS) and Special Interest Group Grant, UiTM.

Dr. Lai received his Ph.D. from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) and Technische Universität Ilmenau under the DAAD Ph.D. Sandwich Programme, and was conferred the prestigious Chancellor Award by the Queen of Johor. He is currently an Associate Professor at the Department of Biomedical Engineering as well as the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of BioSight Sdn Bhd, a spin-off company of Universiti Malaya. Dr. Lai has been instrumental in fostering industry-academic collaborations, leading multiple industrial consultation projects. His contributions to science and technology, particularly in medical engineering, have been significant. His research focuses on the development of innovative biomedical devices, including a portable, non-invasive scoliosis detection system and a point-of-care device for knee osteoarthritis diagnosis using vibroarthrography (VAG). More recently, he has pioneered novel machine learning approaches for automated cartilage pattern recognition in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), reducing the need for extensive human intervention. His work has gained substantial interest from both local and international industries. Recognized for his excellence in research and education, Dr. Lai has received more than 30 prestigious international and national awards. These include multiple Special Awards and Gold Medals, as well as Best of the Best Awards from ITEX, MTE, i-ENVEX, AiNEX, PECIPTA, and BioMalaysia Expo, among others. He has also represented Universiti Malaya in global competitions such as iCREATe in Singapore, Thailand, and Japan. Additionally, he has been honored with accolades such as the Best Presentation Award from Fukuoka University (Japan), the Best Sustainable Prototype Award at Digital Wonderland Singapore Expo 2019, an Honorable Mention Award at NSIEC 2020 (Taiwan), and the First Runner-Up Award at the Brunei Crown Prince CIPTA 2021 competition. In recognition of his achievements, he was elected as a Member of the Young Scientists Network - Academy of Sciences Malaysia (YSN-ASM) in 2021 and as a board member of the World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) Young Affiliates Network (TYAN). Dr. Lai has authored over 140 peer-reviewed publications indexed in ISI/Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus, with an h-index of 22. His work has led to the granting of 17 patents and intellectual property rights. As principal investigator or co-researcher, he has successfully completed 22 funded projects and is currently leading 13 ongoing research initiatives supported by government agencies, industry partners, and international collaborators. As a credentialed engineer, Dr. Lai is a registered Professional Engineer with a Practicing Certificate (PEPC) at the Board of Engineers Malaysia (BEM) and holds several esteemed engineering titles, including Fellow of Engineers Australia (FIEAust), APEC Engineer (IntPE Australia), Chartered Professional Engineer (CPEng, NER Australia), Fellow and Council Member of the Institution of Engineers Malaysia (IEM), Senior Member of IEEE (USA), Member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), Chartered Engineer (CEng, UK), and Professional Technologist at the Malaysia Board of Technologists (MBOT). Dr. Lai is actively involved in academic and professional service, serving as a Technical Programme Committee (TPC) member and reviewer for over 50 international conferences, workshops, and journals. He has delivered more than 20 keynote and invited talks at international conferences. Additionally, he serves on the editorial boards of several indexed journals, including as Associate Editor of IEEE Access and IET Image Processing, and as Lead Guest Editor for journals such as Multimedia Tools and Applications and Current Medical Imaging. Beyond his academic and research endeavors, Dr. Lai plays a pivotal role in engineering education. He is the key resource person for curriculum development and accreditation reviews (EAC/MQA/QMEC) in his department and serves as an Accreditation Panel member under the Board of Engineers Malaysia. In 2018, he was appointed as a Fellow under the Ministry of Education Malaysia’s CEO@Faculty Programme, working with C-suite executives at PLUS Malaysia Berhad on digital innovation strategies for IR4.0 transformation. He played a key role in developing commercial strategies for the PLUS Video Analytics (VA) Infrastructure, a project with an investment exceeding RM20 million. Dr. Lai’s research excellence has been recognized with numerous awards, including the ACU Fellowship by the Association of Commonwealth Universities (UK) in 2021 for his research on hospital readmission risks among recovered COVID-19 patients. He was also honored with the IEM Young Engineer Award 2021, the IEEE-EMBS Early Career Achievement Award 2021, and the BEM Malaysia Most Prominent Young Engineering Leader Award (Tokoh Muda) 2022, presented by the Prime Minister of Malaysia. In 2024, he received the Anugerah Penyelidik Muda Cemerlang (Bidang Sains) from Universiti Malaya. As the head of the Advanced Analytics Research Group at the Medical Imaging Laboratory, Dr. Lai has supervised 75 postgraduate students (19 PhD, 9 MSc, and 19 MEng completed; 21 PhD and 7 MSc ongoing). His research team has secured over RM5 million in funding for healthcare technology, medical imaging, and bioinstrumentation projects. His innovations have led to the development of clinically impactful diagnostic prototypes, including OsteoKneeKit™ and Scoltech™, both of which are currently undergoing commercialization. The Scoltech™ project has been approved under the UM Deep Tech Accelerator Programme with RM50,000 in seed funding, with Dr. Lai serving as CTO. Additionally, Dr. Lai contributes as an external examiner for PhD and MSc dissertations, both locally and internationally, and serves as a professional mentor for IEM (Malaysia) and Engineers Australia. He is also an external assessor for higher learning accreditation frameworks, an advisor for industry-academic liaison units, and a board member for Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia’s (USIM) new technologist programme. Furthermore, he serves on the Disciplinary Committee Panel of the Advocates and Solicitors Disciplinary Board (ASDB) under the Bar Council Malaysia.