Ir. Dr. Hwa-Jen YAP is a Professor at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaya, Malaysia. He obtained a tertiary academic qualification from the Universiti Malaya for a B.Eng in Mechanical Engineering, Master of Engineering Science and PhD in Engineering.  Before joining UM, he worked in the Air-Conditioning R&D industry from 2000 to 2002. He has to date published more than 100 papers in respectable journals and conference proceedings both locally and internationally. He has supervised more than 15 PhD and Master's students. His area of interest in research includes Extended Reality (Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, Mixed Reality),  Virtual Manufacturing (VM), Product Design, Artificial Intelligence, Sports Engineering, Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR4.0), Robotics (Industrial Robots & Collaborative Robots, Cobot) and Automation. He is also actively involved in consultancy projects, in which he has more than 15 research & technology projects related to the Aerospace Manufacturing industry. He was the advisor of an undergraduate robotics team (R.E.D – Robotics.Engineering.Design) which has won more than 30 prizes/awards in inter-varsity competitions.  Ir. Dr. Yap was the head of the Centre of Product Design & Manufacturing (CPDM) from 2013 to 2015. He was the Deputy Dean (Development) of the Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaya from 2017 to 2018. Currently, he is the Director of Universiti Malaya's Consultancy Centre (Pusat Perundingan Universiti Malaya, UMConsult), Director of the UPUM Resources Sdn Bhd and Managing Director of the UPUM Sdn Bhd. On professional qualifications, he is a Professional Engineer (P.Eng) in the Mechanical Engineering discipline registered with the Board of Engineers Malaysia (BEM). He is also a member of The Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET) and a Chartered Engineer (C.Eng) of the Engineering Council, UK.

Associate Professor Dr Jacob John completed his basic dental training in 1994 and subsequently qualified as a Prosthodontist in 1997 and has always been active in the field of oral health care. In 2023, he also qualified as a Master in Medical Education from Universiti Malaya. He had served as a Lecturer at the Tamil Nādu Dr MGR Medical University, India and as a Dental Officer in the Ministry of Health, Malaysia before joining as an academic at the Faculty of Dentistry, University of Malaya, Malaysia in 2009. He also holds an appointment as an Honorary lecturer at a few dental institutions in India.  Over the past 14 years, Dr Jacob has actively supervised and guided students pursuing their Masters in Prosthodontics (MClinDEnt), Masters in Dental Sciences, Masters in Oral Sciences and at the doctoral level besides the many undergraduate dental students. He is a Life Member of the Indian Prosthodontic Society, founding Secretary of the Malaysian Association for Prosthodontics and currently the Honorary Secretary of the Asian Academy of Prosthodontics. He has been an active member of the International Association for Disability and Oral Health since 2011 and was recently conferred its Fellowship for his “sustained high level of iADH activity and clinical care for the people with disability, alongside research, pedagogy, advocacy and service in the area of Special Care Dentistry”.  Dr Jacob also works very closely with the Special Olympics Malaysia, as its Clinical Director for Special Smiles, by providing oral health education and care for its intellectually disabled members. As part of his academic career, Dr Jacob has been actively involved in the field of research, collaborating within Malaysia and globally. Besides Prosthodontics, his special interest lies in the areas of Geriatric Dentistry and Dental Education. He is appointed as an Academic Board member of the Federation of Special Care Dentistry, India and as a Board Member of the American Society for Geriatric Dentistry. He has to his credit over 50 peer reviewed, international publications as scientific articles and book chapters with an H-Index of 15 and over 1800 citations in Google Scholar.  Dr Jacob is very passionate about Community Outreach activities and he was the first recipient of the prestigious Jan Andersson-Norinder Award by the IADH in 2016 in recognition of his work among people with special needs and the under privileged. Over the years, he has also presented his work at numerous national and international conferences.  

Siti Fairus Abdul Sani, an Associate Professor at Universiti Malaya (UM), is a dedicated researcher and educator in the field of Radiation and Medical Physics. She has recently honored with the prestigious award Anugerah Saintis Muda Negara 2024 (National Young Scientist Award 2024), recognizing her contributions to science and her research in radiation physics. This esteemed award reflects her commitment to advancing scientific knowledge and her hope to inspire future generations of scientists in Malaysia. Siti Fairus earned her PhD from the University of Surrey, UK, in 2015, and since then, she has established an outstanding academic and research record. With 123 publications, an H-index of 20, and over 1,000 citations, she has made significant contributions span teaching, research and community engagement in radiation applications for medicine, industry, and environmental studies. She served as the Deputy Head of UM’s Radiation Protection Services Unit (2016-2017) and holds a Radiation Protection Officer (RPO) certification. Her research has advanced understanding in areas such as EMT, FDFT1, endometrial and amyloidosis metabolite characterization, passive dosimetry, natural radioactivity, radiation sterilization, optical methods for radiation damage detection, and Monte Carlo simulations for medical and nuclear reactor applications. She has supervised over 70 students, including 15 PhDs (8 graduated), 3 MScs (3 graduated), and 53 FYP undergraduates, and led the Radiation Laboratory (RLab) at Department of Physics for seven years. Since 2014, she has presented her work at international conferences, including in Prague, Crete, Bologna, Beijing, Mexico, Sydney, India and Indonesia as an invited speaker, oral and poster presentations. In recognition of her academic and research excellence, Siti Fairus was invited to participate in the 2023 Global Young Scientists Summit in Singapore and was nominated by the Academy of Sciences Malaysia for the 72nd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting. Her interdisciplinary research is supported by multiple grants, including the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS), and an RM400,000 research grant from a collaboration with Princess Nourah University in Saudi Arabia. Her career achievements include a range of awards, including Special Award and Gold Award at the MTE2025, Gold Award in AiNEX2025, Silver Award at the NITC2023, Gold Award at the AiNEX2021, Gold Awards at the iMTC2020 4.0, Platinum Award at the InSIDE 2019, and Gold Award at the MTE2016 and ITEX2016. Alongside her research, Siti Fairus actively fosters a love for science among students from kindergarten through high school. She supports STEM education by training teachers and parents and has developed art-integrated STEM modules for secondary schools. She has also served as a judge for science and innovation competitions organized by the Ministry of Education Malaysia. A memorable moment in her journey was being invited by IKIM radio for an “Inspirasiku” interview and being featured on the Extraordinary Muslims blog, sharing her inspiring PhD journey in 2016. Siti Fairus work supports SDG 3: Good Health and Well-Being by advancing safer radiation applications in medicine, while her innovative STEM-based teaching aligns with SDG 4: Quality Education, inspiring future scientists. Through research in radiation dosimetry and detector technologies, she contributes to SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure, enhancing safety in medical and industrial applications. Her focus on radiation’s environmental impact promotes SDG 13: Climate Action by advocating sustainable nuclear practices. Backed by grants and Universiti Malaya, her efforts reflect SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals, fostering interdisciplinary collaborations to address global challenges and drive innovation.