Committee Members

Mary Ellen Hamby, MSN-Ed, RN, CNE, is an Assistant Professor of Nursing at Clark State College and teaches culture and diversity in nursing at Arizona College. A Certified Nurse Educator with over 15 years of experience, she is dedicated to advancing trauma-informed and culturally competent approaches in nursing education and practice. An active member of the Transcultural Nursing Society, she presented her work on trauma-informed care in nursing education at the 2024 annual symposium, with her abstract published in International Nurse Education Today.

Dr. Ibiyonu “Ibiyo” Omowunmi Lawrence, MD is an internist and geriatric medicine specialist affiliated with Rutgers Health / Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA. She earned her medical degree from the University of Lagos College of Medicine (1997), completed her internal medicine residency at St. John’s Episcopal Hospital (NY), and pursued a geriatrics fellowship at NYU School of Medicine. Dr. Lawrence combines clinical expertise with dedicated patient care, particularly excelling in internal medicine and elderly health optimization.

Asst. Prof. Dr. Med. Sanja Knežević is an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Serbia, and Head of the Cardiology Department at the Pediatrics Clinic. She earned her medical degree from the University of Belgrade in 2006, completed her PhD in Pediatric Cardiology in 2014, and became a certified Pediatric Cardiologist in 2023. With over 16 years of clinical experience, she has worked at top institutions including the Institute of Neonatology and University Children’s Hospital in Belgrade. Dr. Knežević has received advanced training in Germany, Austria, and France, and has authored numerous publications and book chapters in pediatric cardiology.

Dr. Anja Human-Hendricks is a registered social worker and lecturer in the Department of Social Work at the University of the Western Cape (UWC), South Africa. She holds a BA in Social Work, an MA in Child and Family Studies, and a PhD in Social Work from UWC, with her doctoral research focusing on intergenerational parenting styles in Genadendal. Her academic interests include child and family well-being, intergenerational parenting, and community development, with a strong emphasis on empowering families and youth. Dr. Human-Hendricks is also a UKRI-SCaRPE-A Early Career Research Fellow and actively participates in collaborative African research networks focused on identity, belonging, and family resilience.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Rafidah Binti Mazlan is a senior lecturer and Chair of the Centre for Ear, Hearing and Speech (HEARS) at the Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). She earned her Ph.D. in Audiology from the University of Queensland, Australia, and specializes in pediatric audiology, with a focus on early identification and intervention for childhood hearing loss. Dr. Mazlan leads the Audiology Programme at UKM and has published widely in international journals on topics such as middle ear assessment in children and audiological tools adapted for the Malaysian population. Her work plays a vital role in improving hearing healthcare and rehabilitation services in Malaysia, particularly for infants and young children.

Prof. Luciana Mascia is a Full Professor of Anaesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine at the University of Salento, Italy. With a distinguished background in intensive care, she has authored over 125 scientific publications and garnered more than 13,000 citations in areas including neurocritical care, mechanical ventilation, and acute brain injury management. Previously affiliated with the University of Turin, she now leads advanced clinical simulation programs at Unisalento, training healthcare professionals in realistic emergency scenarios. Prof. Mascia is co-author of key medical textbooks and is widely recognized among Italy’s top biomedical scientists. Her research and teaching continue to shape modern practices in anaesthesia, resuscitation, and intensive care medicine across Europe.

Dr. Nader Ghaffari Khaligh is an Associate Professor at the University of Malaya, Malaysia, with a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of Guilan, Iran. His research centers on green chemistry, catalysis, and sustainable synthesis methods, with a particular focus on ionic liquids, polymer-supported catalysts, and heterocyclic compound development. As a researcher at the Nanotechnology & Catalysis Research Centre (NANOCEN), he has published over 24 peer-reviewed articles in leading scientific journals. Dr. Khaligh’s work emphasizes environmentally friendly and solvent-free synthetic techniques, including applications in wastewater treatment and pharmaceutical scaffolds. Recognized internationally for his contributions, he also mentors graduate students and fosters interdisciplinary collaborations to advance eco-conscious solutions in organic chemistry.

Biography

Marta Campos Ferreira is an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, in the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management. She is Vice Director of the MSc in Service Engineering and Management and a member of its Scientific Committee. She holds a PhD in Transportation Systems (2018) and an MSc in Service Engineering and Management (2010) from the Faculty of Engineering, and an undergraduate degree in Economics (pre-Bologna, 2007) from the Faculty of Economics of the University of Porto.

Marta is Associate Editor of the Expert Systems with Applications journal and the International Journal of Management and Decision Making, and co-founder and co-editor-in-chief of the collection Research and Entrepreneurship: Making the Leap from Research to Business in SN Discover Applied Sciences. She has served as editor of five volumes of conference proceedings and published over 80 papers in books, conferences, and international journals.

She is co-founder of the International Symposium on Research and Entrepreneurship and the Congress on Service Engineering and Management (CESG). She has organized and co-chaired several conferences and has supervised more than 80 master’s students and 7 ongoing PhD students.

Her research focuses on service design, interaction design, participatory design of digital solutions, behavioral adaptation, and accessibility.

Hassan EL FADIL received the B.S. degree in Electronics and the Aggregation degree in Electrical Engineering from ENSET, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco, in 1994 and 1999, respectively. He earned the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Automatic Control from EMI, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco, in 2003 and 2008, respectively. He is currently a Professor at ENSA, Ibn Tofail University, Kénitra, Morocco, and serves as the Director of the ASE Laboratory. His research interests include nonlinear and adaptive control, power converters and electric motor control, renewable energy, distributed energy resources, smart grids, and electric vehicles. Prof. EL FADIL has contributed to the edition of over 15 special issues and conference proceedings and has participated in more than 60 international conferences, including ten that he co-organized. He is a member of several international scientific societies and associations in the fields of automatic control and renewable energy. He has published over 180 journal and conference papers in his areas of expertise.

Zachariah John A. Belmonte is a faculty member and Board of Regents member at the Technological University of the Philippines (TUP). He holds degrees in Non-Destructive Testing and Manufacturing & Production Engineering from TUP and a master’s in Industrial Engineering from Mapúa University, where he is completing his PhD. His research covers STEM education, sustainability, technopreneurship, and technology adoption, with publications in journals such as Acta Psychologica and Nuclear Engineering and Technology. He actively promotes industry–academe collaboration in the Philippines and abroad.

Dr. Hui Xin Liu is a Professor in the School of Life Sciences at China Medical University, specializing in microbiome research and public health. With over 15 years of experience in life science research, Dr. Liu has authored more than 50 peer-reviewed publications, focusing on the gut microbiota’s role in host health and microbial–host interactions. He actively participates in professional societies, serves as a committee member of the Provincial Medical Association, and contributes to public and maternal–child health policy as a member of the China National Health Committee. A passionate advocate for global scientific collaboration and innovation, Dr. Liu looks forward to contributing to the upcoming 2nd International Conference on Advances in Public Health & Nursing.

Dr. Hassan is a distinguished scientist internationally recognized for his pioneering work in the field of infectious diseases, particularly in the development of novel antiviral therapeutics targeting human herpesvirus infections. His scientific endeavors are complemented by a deep commitment to advancing medical knowledge and improving public health outcomes. Beyond his laboratory achievements, Dr. Hassan plays an active role in the global scientific community. He serves on the editorial boards of several high-impact international journals indexed in Web of Science (Clarivate) and Scopus, reflecting his reputation as a trusted authority in virology, antiviral pharmacology, molecular medicine, microbiology, and immunology. He is also an active member of various international scientific societies related to virology and pharmacology, further demonstrating his engagement with the broader biomedical research community. A comprehensive overview of his scholarly contributions can be found on his ORCID profile (https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3922-2738). Dr. Hassan’s expertise has earned him invitations to serve as an organizing committee member and keynote speaker at numerous national and international conferences and symposia. His contributions have taken him to a wide array of countries—including the Czech Republic, Slovak Republic, Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy, Belgium, England, Spain, Canada, Brazil, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, and Malaysia—where he has shared his innovative research, fostered interdisciplinary collaboration, and inspired scientific dialogue aimed at addressing some of the most pressing challenges in infectious disease research and antiviral therapy. In recognition of his outstanding scientific achievements and international impact, Dr. Hassan has received several prestigious international scientific awards, further underscoring his leadership and innovation in the field..

Yabsra Dubale is a doctoral researcher at Hasselt University and Jimma University, specializing in child nutrition, physical fitness, and feeding practices in low- and middle-income countries. She has conducted both qualitative and cross-sectional studies and has presented her findings at international academic conferences. Her recent work includes a systematic review and meta-analysis comparing physical fitness and motor skill performance in undernourished children. Yabsra has published articles in peer-reviewed journals and actively participates in multidisciplinary research within the fields of public health and nutrition.