Social sciences

Galvin is a multidisciplinary academic, educator, and entrepreneur with a proven track record of excellence in business, education, and innovation.

Felix Christian Haas is a development consultant, advisor and researcher with interest in the interface of business and politics/policy in Southeast Asia (specifically Myanmar) and Europe. He is open to any collaboration, joint publications or to providing commentary on economic development related issues in Asia (e.g. trade, investment), on geopolitical and international relations as well as on issues related to Myanmar.

Mr. Wyrlo Dela Cruz is a faculty in University of Santo Tomas Legazpi. He is teaching research, philosophy subjects and social science subjects. He has published several researches in local and international journals. He used to be a researcher in National Commission on Indigenous Peoples-V and currently and a researcher coordinator in Univeristy of Santo Tomas Legazpi. His research interest is in continental philosophy, education, and research management. He is currently a member National Research Council of the Philippines.

Jeconiah Dreisbach is a Filipino interdisciplinary social scientist specializing in the sociolinguistics of migration, family language policy, language contact, and Philippine Studies.

Shimi Chak is a climate advocate and Indigenous youth leader. Her interest lies in renewable energy, policy advocacy, and community-led solutions, helping refugees and Indigenous groups adapt to climate change and preserve traditions.

Priyanka Jayawardena is a Research Economist at the Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka (IPS). Priyanka has over 20 years of experience in conducting economic policy related research on health, education, labour and fiscal distribution analysis. She is experienced in quantitative data analysis with applying econometric evaluation techniques -- distributional analysis, quasi-experimental methods, wealth index, equity in opportunity indices. She has conducted numerous research studies relating to the human resource development in Sri Lanka for a variety of development partners including World Bank, ADB and UNICEF and member of the Southern Voice network. Many of her recent research has been published in peer reviewed national and international journals and book chapters.

Nazifa Rafa is an interdisciplinary researcher with a strong commitment to addressing global challenges through innovative, equitable, and sustainable approaches. She is thought leader in the intersections of climate justice and humanitarian research, contributing actionable insights for policy and practice, and a solution-driven academic focused on pragmatic approaches that benefit vulnerable populations and ecosystems. She combines scientific rigor, policy relevance, and social equity to address complex, interrelated challenges in climate resilience, sustainability, and public health. Her work spans multiple disciplines, integrating environmental science, energy technology, social justice, and disaster risk management, often with a focus on marginalized and vulnerable populations.

A dynamic force in social creative catalyst, navigates the global landscape with a unique perspective, work across disciplines in sustainability, creativity, human factors, entrepreneurship and innovation.

Nehaluddin Ahmad (born in 1952) is a public figure and prominent academician from India who served as a law professor at the Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Faculty of Law, Sultan Sharif Ali Islamic University (UNISSA) in Brunei Darussalam

Zheimie H. Zamri is a Bruneian Senior Research Assistant and Tutor, pursuing a Ph.D. in Law at UNISSA, with research interests in human rights and legal social issues.

Roman Fainshmidt is a researcher and lecturer specialized in Political Economy of Southeast Asia, Russian ties with Asian states as well as North Korean Studies. He has been actively involved in the academic field since 2016. He has authored over 40 scholarly articles, which have been published in both Russian and international academic journals and conference proceedings. He has held positions at prestigious institutions such as the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA - Moscow, Russia), Moscow School of Social and Economic Sciences (MSSES - Moscow, Russia), and President University (PresUniv - Bekasi, Indonesia). More than 200 of his expert insights and commentaries have been featured in prominent media outlets, including the Russian Gazette, Forbes, RBC-TV, RTVI US, Kommersant, RT, China Radio International, Zindaa (Mongolia), etc. He is a permanent contributor to RBC-TV (Russia), RTVI US, TV BRICS, MIR-24 (CIS).

Dr. Hiran Shanake Perera, (senior lecturer of psychology at Sunway University) is an experimental psychologist and a cognitive neuroscientist in Malaysia.

I'm currently an adjunct professor at the Asian Institute of Management in Manila. I crafted a course called Art-Science Thinking based on my dissertation on Culture as Transformative Innovation: Filipino Care in the Practice of Family Medicine. Since 2017, my consultancy & studio has been collaborating with the Dept. of Science & Technology in the Philippines.

Ph.D. candidate at the Faculty of Economics, Chaing Mai University with prior experience in public policy and research, especially in Myanmar's economic development.

His personal aspiration is to teach English and linguistics, educate bilingual for ethnic students in Viet Nam, and do language research.

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

Sunimalee Madurawala is a Research Economist at the Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka (IPS) with over 15 years of research experience. Her expertise lies in the areas of gender, health economics, and population studies.

Hamidah Othman, obtained her Bachelor of Nursing Science in 2008, Master of Nursing in 2013 from the University of Malaya and PhD in Nursing, 2022 from International Islamic University Malaysia. Her interest was a critical care in nursing and psychological need towards family members with patients’ admit to the Intensive Care Unit, End of Life care and research in relation to the evidence based practice in nursing. She is currently working as Head and Lecturer at School of Nursing Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sultan Zainal Abidin, Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia.

Dr. Irshad CV holds a PhD in Economics with specialisation in Health Economics from IIT Madras, under the supervision of Prof Umakant Dash and Prof VR Muraludharan. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Economics from the University of Calicut. His research focuses on health economics, population health, and gerontology. His doctoral thesis, Healthy Ageing in India: A Mixed Methods Approach, is among the early works on the subject in India and introduced the country’s first multi-dimensional Healthy Ageing Index (HAI). Two key studies from his thesis were published in the Journal of Population Ageing (Springer). He also presented his extended thesis-related research at an Asian Development Bank (ADB) conference supported by the Government of Japan. In 2021, he received a research grant from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and IIPS Mumbai to examine social frailty among older adults. He co-edited the “Ageing and Care” section in Handbook of Ageing, Health and Public Policy (Springer).

Angel Investor and a Vision-driven entrepreneur/executive with career-long record of business growth and innovation.

Physician-researcher; Primary area of research: Ageing, at the individual and the population level; Geographical focus: Singapore, with some work in other Asian countries.

Former journalist turned academic

DOCTORAL CANDIDATE AT JAWAHARLAL NEHRU UNIVERSITY, NEW DELHI, INDIA

Ina is a PhD student in Monash University, Melbourne, Australia. She is now working on the impact of government control over creativity in Indonesia. Previously, she worked as a lecturer in Universitas Atma Jaya Yogyakarta, Indonesia, for more than six years. Since 2022, she becomes the Membership Director of the South East Asia Media Studies Association (SEAMSA). She is interested to research and collaborate with other academics who focus on development communication, youth studies, and digital media. If you are interested in her works, please contact her through email ([email protected])

Sauqi Futaqi is Lecturer and Researcher at the Department of Islamic Education in Universitas Islam Darul Ulum, Lamongan, Indonesia. He has expertise in multicultural education. His doctoral program focuses on multicultural religious education.

Someone in love with a field of knowledge, have strong desire to discover and explore about teaching and learning. My primary research interests focus on media studies, crisis reporting, fake news, media freedom and democratization, particularly in analysing the media content which is closely connected to politics, state and market; and ideological representation.

Erwin James A. dela Cruz (he/they) or Alonzo, is a graduate student and researcher in Philippine Studies with a sub-specialization in Development Studies at the University of the Philippines Diliman and also serves as the Secretary General of the Southeast Asian Media Studies Association (SEAMSA). Their research interests are political economy of media, media industry studies, Boys’ Love studies, and development studies. They intend to engage with Asian media industries and their production of LGBTQ+ media.

Dr. Niranjan Devkota is a distinguished researcher in climate change, agriculture, and poverty. He actively contributes to policy dialogues and has extensive experience in governmental and non-governmental sectors, demonstrating his commitment to driving positive change.

Ilham Akhsanu Ridlo is an early-career researcher and assistant professor at Indonesia's Faculty of Public Health, Universitas Airlangga. He is a Ph.D. student at Institut für Kommunikationswissenschaft und Medienforschung (IfKW), Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. Ilham believes science communication is crucial in bridging the gap between research practice and health policy implementation. His research area concerns how scientists and journalists influence decision-makers to understand scientific uncertainty in public health.