Category: 2021 Speaker

Natalie Smith joined Coventry University as CSR Manager in 2019 and is currently responsible for cohering CSR activity from across the Group under three key themes: Enterprise, Health & Wellbeing, and Education. Alongside this, she works on developing the University’s Social Impact and Community Engagement narratives. Natalie’s previous experience has focussed on tackling food and fuel poverty through managing CSR programmes, community funds and launching a corporate foundation.

Prof. Muneer Al Mubarak is a VP of Administration and Finance and Acting Dean for Graduate Studies & Research. He received his Ph.D. in Business & Economic Studies (Marketing) from University of Leeds, UK. Prof. Al Mubarak’s expertise is in strategic management, marketing management, and relationship marketing. He has over 34 years work experience as he contributed well in teaching and training in areas such as Leadership, Strategic Management, Relationship Marketing, Marketing Management, Marketing Communications, Sustainability, Corporate Social Responsibility, Customer Relationship Management and Service Excellence. He has participated in many community activities over the years and is a reviewer of many reputable international journals.

Professor Muralidhar Miryala is Board of Councilor and former Deputy President at Shibaura Institute of Technology (SIT) and Professor at the Graduate School of Science and Engineering / College of Engineering.

Prof Miryala’s main task is to transform SIT into a high rank university. To accomplish this goal, he has been working and further designed several innovative programs to enhance global initiatives for SIT. For instance, global project based learning (gPBL), advanced project based learning (aPBL), Ph.D innovative program, publication based internship program, high school internship program as these programs are crucial towards global ranking projects.

On the other hand, interested in applications and technology of bulk single-grain superconductors; thus, Prof Miryala had developed a new class of mixed LRE-123 system which can be used up to 15 T at 77 K and high temperatures up to 90.2 K. He developed a novel technology to produce a RE-123 type silver sheathed wire on the basis of solid state / liquid phase reaction. Prof Miryala has developed bulk MgB2 with enhanced superconducting properties, paving the way to affordable superconducting magnets for medical and transportation applications. Successful in his intellectual mindset enabled him to produce a small type superconducting bulk magnet which is useful to magnetize both high-Tc superconducting materials and magnetic materials in a variety of industrial applications. Prof Miryala also contributed to develop technology for the development of DC Superconducting Cable for Railway system applications. Prof Miryala has authored and co-authored more than 500 research items including patents, books, review-articles, articles, press release etc., and delivered over 150 oral presentations including plenary and invited ones.

Prof Miryala holds several Japanese national and international patents. Awards: Young Scientist Project Award, DST-Govt. of India (1995), Director’s Award, SRL-ISTEC (1998 and 2003), 1999 PASREG Award of Excellence (1999), Best Presentation Award at the IWCC11 (2003), Best Researcher Award, ISTEC-SRL (2007 and 2008), Best Researcher Award, Railway Technical Research Institute (2012), the Amity Global Academic Excellence Award (2017), Engineering Education Award for Contribution in Higher Education (2018), SIT Excellent Education Award (2019) by President. IAAM Fellow (2020), Vebleo Fellow (2021), Best Faculty Award (2021), Pravasi Bharatiya Summan Award by President, Govt. of India (2021). SIT Chairman’s Award (2021), Incredible Academician of World Award (2022). He is an Editor-in-Chief and Editorial board member of several international journals. Currently I am adjunct professor, visiting professor and international advisor for several universities in worldwide.

Dr.Laksanasopin is a Deputy Director of Hatch, a student incubator at King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi. She received Ph.D. degree in Biomedical Engineering from Columbia University, USA in 2015, M.S. degree in Biomedical Engineering from Columbia University, USA in 2010, and B.Sc. degree in physics (First Class Honors) from Prince of Songkla University, Thailand. Despite her background in Biomedical Engineering, she is passionate about entrepreneurship education. She initiated new courses and activities to promote and develop entrepreneurial skills in students. With her experiences in scientific research and her commitment in improving the outcomes, she is actively examining the effect of learning approaches on student developments and assisting in the technology commercialization and spin-offs from university’s technologies. She specializes in microfluidics (hard plastic, PDMS), point-of-care diagnostics, assay development (ELISA, PCR, cell-based), field testing and implementation of new healthcare technologies (pre-clinical trial), and healthcare IoT (Internet of Things). She received the Outstanding Dissertation Award from the National Research Council of Thailand and KMUTT’s Young Researcher Award 2018 in IoT Platform for Point-of-Care Monitoring.

Professor Mansoor Alaali has served as the President of Ahlia University since 2015. He holds a BSc from the University of Teesside (UK), an MSc in Computer Science, and a PhD in Artificial Intelligence and Knowledge-Based Systems from Aston University in Birmingham (UK).

His research interests span applied computer science, data mining, algorithms, artificial intelligence, university governance and ethics. Among his recent publications are two books: “Artificial Minds and Digital Souls: AI and the Future of Humanity” and “Success Through the Soul: Building Confidence”.

Professor Mansoor is an editor and reviewer for several international peer-reviewed journals and a regular keynote speaker at global conferences. He holds memberships in multiple professional bodies and has delivered numerous workshops and seminars in both technical and non-technical areas, including strategic planning and information technology.

Previously, he has developed innovative technical solutions and provided consultancy services to various international and local organisations.

Professor Mansoor advocates for a renewed perspective on higher education in the Arab world, believing that reform is essential to empower future generations and uplift societies.

Under his leadership, Ahlia University has achieved significant milestones in local and international accreditation, advancing both research and educational excellence.

His recent intellectual pursuits focus on human philosophy and expanding the frontiers of knowledge.

Dieter Bryniok graduated as a micro-biologist. He obtained his doctorate from the University of Tuebingen, Germany with a doctoral thesis on the immuno-enzymatic detection of methanogens in biogas producing microbial consortia. Between 1985 and 2017, he worked for the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology (IGB), Stuttgart, Germany as a scientist, research group leader and vice department leader, initially in the chemical microbiology (CMB) department. He has been vice department leader of the institute’s environmental biotechnology and biochemical engineering department (UBT) since 2001. Previously, he worked as senior project manager in the fields of biodegradation of hazardous substances, water management, bio-energy, sustainable development, industrial biotechnology and bio-economy. Byniok headed the Fraunhofer Demonstration Center for Process Integrated Environmental Technology for six years (1995-2001) He was also responsible for establishing the Fraunhofer Center for Energy and the Environment in Pittsburgh, PA, USA, between the years of 1998 and 2001. Furthermore, he was managing director of the Fraunhofer Water Systems Alliance – a network of up to 13 Fraunhofer Institutes working in the field of water supply and wastewater management – for ten years from 2007 onwards. Bryniok held a professorship in environmental biotechnology from 2010 to 2022 at the newly founded Hamm-Lippstadt University of Applied Sciences (HSHL) in Hamm, Germany, where he worked full-time from November 2017. He headed two research fields for bioenergy and bio-economy. Since 2018, he was Vice President for Research and Transfer, before he retired in August 2022.

A senior leader with a background in strategy development, collaborative working and knowledge management. At Coventry University Jo is the institutional lead on national and international policy engagement. She is responsible for coordinating our engagement with relevant bodies, national regulatory bodies and HE networks such as University Alliance and the World Technology Universities Network (WTUN). Through her work she has a wide network of HE, industry and policy contacts. Jo has led on a number of organisational change programmes within the university, the two most significant involved (i) establishing two new professional services departments to support our growing research aspirations, as well as our continued engagement with industry and (ii) the launch of a formal Location Independent Working programme. She is a CMI accredited coach and supports colleagues with their personal development through our university’s coaching and mentoring academy. Jo strongly believes that collaborative working is key to economic and societal growth and that the Higher Education sector has a key role as a catalyst for collaboration. Experience: HE policy in the UK; developing business cases for investment; chairing and facilitation of large and small groups; public speaking; networking and building influence; project management; public funding bid writing and development; flexible working practices; business-university collaboration; public funded research and enterprise programmes; business and enterprise support; managing complex budgets; information and knowledge management.

Prof. Smile Dzisi is the former Vice-Chancellor/Rector of Koforidua Technical University. She was the first female to be appointed a Rector of a Polytechnic in Ghana. She ably led the transition of her Polytechnic into a Technical University. Prof. Dzisi holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Sciences from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana; a Master of Public Administration degree from University of Ghana and a PhD in Entrepreneurship and Innovation from Swinburne University of Technology in Australia where she also received an award for the most distinguished Ph.D. thesis. Prof. Dzisi is the first female to serve as chair of the Vice-Chancellors of Technical Universities of Ghana. She has provided consultancy to the DAAD, UNFPA, Commonwealth of Learning and the World Bank. She champions entrepreneurship education, women empowerment, as well as technical vocational education and training (TVET) and was recently selected as a model for TVET by COTVET/GIZ.

Prof. Dzisi served on the Association of Technical Universities and Polytechnics in Africa Board as West Africa Coordinator of Women in Technical Education and Development. For her outstanding competency, innovativeness, commitment and passion for excellence, Prof. Dzisi received the Name in Science and Education Award from the Academic Union and the Club of Rectors of Europe, United Kingdom in 2019, Ghana Women of Excellence Award in 2019 and the Daasebre Silver Jubilee Award of Excellence in 2017. She is currently the President of Data Link Institute of Business and Technology, a private university college in Tema, Ghana.

Peter Scharff is the former president of TU Ilmenau, Germany since 2004 and is currently a Professor of Chemistry. Before he was the Director of Physical Institute and Head of the Department of Chemistry. Peter received his Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry from the Technical University Clausthal, Germany and his Habilitation (venia legendi) in Inorganic Chemistry from the same institution. Before joining the TU Ilmenau in 1998, he served as a Visiting Professor at Nicolas Copernicus University, Torun, Poland. His research interests consist of preparative carbon chemistry and electrochemistry. He has published nearly 300 papers in international journals. He is member of head of German Exchange Service (DAAD) and fellow of the Academy of Useful Sciences in Erfurt. Peter was awarded several Dres h.c., as well as several Prof. h.c. He was awarded honorary member of senate of TU Ilmenau in 2021.

Prof Scharff is the former Chair of the World Technology Network (2020-2023).