KEYNOTE LECTURE

Nguyen Lan Huong is the Head of the Department of Bioengineering at HUST, with over 25 years of experience in bioenginering education and research. She earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from HUST and her Ph.D. in Bioenvironmental Science from Tottori University, Japan. Her research focuses on sustainable bioprocesses and environmental biotechnology. She has contributed to the ESCANBER and INBERBON projects funded by JICA and JST, promoting collaborative research and training with NUT. In 2024, she was honored to serve as a Visiting Professor at Nagaoka University of Technology, Japan. 

Motoki Kumagai is the CEO of Ahead of the Curve Inc. and Executive Vice President of Sawakami Asset

Management Inc., Japan’s first independent investment trust company. He holds an MBA from the Wharton School of

the University of Pennsylvania and is a Chartered Member of the Securities Analysts Association of Japan (CMA®).

In Hong Kong, he founded GODENYA, a sake-focused restaurant that has earned a Michelin star for three

consecutive years. Currently based in Niigata, he leads the “Niigata Re-Find” initiative, transforming local resources

into global value through projects such as sui, a nationally recognized barrel sauna attracting thousands of visitors

annually, and Né, a luxury auberge restaurant opening in 2025 that has already gained international media attention

as a new model for regional revitalization. He also promotes Japan’s long-term investment model in Asia, including

initiatives in Bangkok, Thailand. In addition, he serves as Board Director & COO of CRAZY Inc., a Tokyo-based

company developing an emotion-driven industry that deepens human relationships and creates social impact through

transformative experiences. His mission is: “From Local Roots to Global Impact – From Japan to the World.”

Nur Aidawaty is a senior lecturer at Faculty of Industrial and Manufacturing Technology and Engineering, Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (UTeM) focussing in control system in machine tools and machine vision system. She had her first degree in Mechanical Engineering from Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP) in 2003. Her MEng in Manufacturing Engineering is from Universiti Malaya (UM) in 2008 and PhD in Control Engineering from Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (UTeM) in 2017. Her experience as academician for 20 years contributes in many researches and teaching areas including module publication, book chapters, conferences and industrial attachments. Currently, she is deputy director of academic planning and development office at Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka.

Norfariza is a senior lecturer, specializes in Advanced Manufacturing Process, Computer-Aided Engineering and Sustainable Manufacturing. She holds both B.Eng. and M.Sc. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Nagaoka University of Technology, Niigata. Formerly the Coordinator of Innovation and Intellectual Property at Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (UTeM)’s Commercialization Centre, she is a registered member of the Malaysia Board of Technologists (MBOT) and a Chartered Engineer with the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (MIMechE). Passionate about fostering the Research, Innovation, Commercialization and Entrepreneur (RICE) ecosystem, she collaborates with Prof. Yamaguchi’s lab under the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)’s ASEAN Blue Innovation Challenge on sustainable fish farming using bio-DHS filters and IoT technology.