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.  

He is an emerging academic and researcher with a solid foundation in accounting, management, and social sciences. Currently serving as a Lecturer at Pusat Asasi Sains Universiti Malaya (PASUM), he is responsible for delivering courses in Management Accounting, Financial Accounting, Economics, and other core subjects across multiple campuses, including an offshore programme in Xi’an, China. He holds a Master of Philosophy (Management) by Research and a Bachelor of Accounting (Hons) from Multimedia University, Cyberjaya. His academic journey is marked by consistent excellence, having earned 11 Dean’s List Awards and maintained a CGPA of 3.78. His research interests lie in public sector financial reporting, particularly the transition to accrual-based accounting within Malaysian Federal Statutory Bodies. His scholarly work includes publications in Scopus- and ERA-indexed journals, along with contributions to academic book chapters and conferences. In addition to his academic achievements, he has contributed to various consultancy projects funded by government agencies, focusing on the financial and digital well-being of Malaysia's B40 communities post-pandemic. His leadership is evident from his involvement in organizing national-level student programs and volunteer projects, where he demonstrated excellent fundraising and project management skills. He combines academic rigour with a people-oriented teaching philosophy, promoting student engagement, interdisciplinary collaboration, and continuous improvement in education and research.

Ir. Ts. Dr. Jafferi Jamaludin received the B.Eng. degree from Universiti Tenaga Nasional, Putrajaya, Malaysia, and the M.Eng.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees from Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He is currently a Senior Lecturer at Universiti Malaya Power Energy Dedicated Advanced Centre (UMPEDAC). He was a Visiting Lecturer at the Department of System Design Engineering, Keio University, Japan from 2018 to 2019. His research interests include energy efficiency, controller design, embedded systems and power electronics. He is a Professional Technologist registered with Malaysia Board of Technologists (MBOT), a Professional Engineer registered with Board of Engineers Malaysia (BEM), a Chartered Engineer registered with the Engineering Council, UK and a member of the IEEE and the IET.