Category: 2024 Speaker

Mr. Surain Thapanangkun is director of Royal Project Foundation and King’s Recommended Project Supporting Center, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi (KMUTT), Thailand.

Surain is an economist interested in development and addressing inequality issues. Currently, he oversees KMUTT’s overall work in community and social engagement, a field in which the university has been involved for over four decades. KMUTT has used its academic excellence in science and engineering to develop relevant and meaningful research questions that address community problems. He now oversees the university’s work areas covering local villages and remote regions across Thailand. Most of these areas are rural societies and ethnic groups facing inequality issues and ecosystems threatened by monoculture farming.

Surain and his research team emphasize participatory work with communities and local stakeholders, analyzing the real needs of communities. By doing so, they create a learning platform called a “social lab” to foster joint problem-solving. Areas of work cover various aspects, such as ensuring food security, developing education for children and community learning, promoting alternative occupations for villagers to replace monoculture farming, promoting community health and well-being, and restoring ecosystems.

In addition to promoting the application of knowledge for community development, Surain and his colleagues also emphasize using the social lab as a learning platform for KMUTT students and staff. This is to encourage them to understand Thai social structures and real problems. It also aims to develop awareness of being global citizens responsible for society and sustainable development.

Kasemsan Manomaiphiiboon holds a PhD degree in Environmental Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology (US) with his thesis on air quality modeling and related mathematical analysis. He has taught at the Joint Graduate School of Energy and Environment, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi (Thailand) since 2006 and supervised many graduate students and post-graduate researchers from various countries. His research involves air quality, climate, weather, and ambient energy using data analytics and numerical modeling as the main driving tools. He has published research findings in various journals, and co-written a book chapter, a book on local administration (environment section), and a mini-book on climate change & air quality. He has regularly engaged in professional services (as expert and reviewer) and occasionally shared opinions to the public through newspaper articles and media channels.

Camar P. Ameril is a graduate with a B.Sc. Biology (2007) degree at Mindanao State University-Marawi City under the College Bound Program Grant and later Academic Scholarship. He joined the Biology Department as an instructor in June 2007. He completed an M.Sc. in Environmental Sanitation (2015) at Ghent University, Belgium, under a Flemish Government Scholarship (VLIR-UOS) and an M.Sc. in Biology (2018) at MSU-Marawi City. He is now pursuing a Ph.D. in Microbiology (minor in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology) at the University of the Philippines-Los Baños, Laguna. For his doctoral dissertation, he is working on the “Chemotherapeutic Potentials of Prebiotic Compound 1,4-Dihydroxy-2-naphthoic Acid (DHNA) Against Prostate Cancer and Bacterial Pathogens,” which aims to combine 2D and 3D culture techniques in drug testing platforms. This involves 3D bioprinting and the use of appropriate hydrogels that serve as bio-inks. His research interests include One Health, antimicrobial resistance, and environmental microbiology. Outside of the academe, he is involved in various volunteering activities and community outreach programs organized by civic organizations and societies.

Dr. Husna Dimapalao is an Assistant Professor at Mindanao State University Marawi City. She handles biology courses both for undergraduate and graduate students. She got her PhD in the University of the Philippines Los Baños. Her dissertation utilized bioinformatic tools that could determine effects of diet particularly indigenous berries of the Philippines to health. She is passionate about doing research for the betterment of the people in Lanao. She wishes to collaborate with researchers outside MSU or even from outside Philippines to do research that could uplift poverty, food insecurity and overall problem of humanity.

Dr. Ying-Jung Yvonne Yeh is the Vice President for International Affairs at National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (Taiwan Tech) and a tenured professor in the Department of Business Administration. She has been in charge of international MBA program for years before taking the position at Office of International Affairs. She also served as a deputy secretary general of Taiwan Academy of Management, and was a member of the reviewing committee for promoting outstanding small and medium enterprises. Her research interests include employee quality of working life, performance management, and the application of technology on work and employee training. As a professor in human resource management, she is dedicated in promoting students’ career opportunities, including global mobilities.

Chawin Chantharasenawong is now currently holds a position of Vice President for Internationalization of King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thnoburi. He is an experienced researcher and academician with over a decade of experience in the field of engineering. He holds a PhD in Aeronautics from the Imperial College London and has since contributed in the field of wind energy, Formula Student racecar and, most recently, remote education technology.

Together with his co-researchers, his team has published over 20 research articles in leading engineering journals and presented his work at numerous international conferences. Chawin has held several administration positions, including Associate Dean for International Affairs at Faculty of Engineering, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi. He is currently the Board of Trustees Chairman at Concordian International School and Deputy Manager for International Affairs for the Princess Maha Chakri Award Foundation. Chawin’s areas of expertise include nonlinear dynamical systems, multiphysics simulations, and optimization techniques.

Apart from his technical skills, Chawin is known for his excellent communication and leadership abilities. He has mentored several graduate students and, through his professional experience, networked with many high-level government organisations in the education sector.

As of the 01 August 2025, Dr Chantharasenawong is the WTUN Operational Board Chair.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Samak Kaewsuksaeng is the Vice President for Research and Innovation of Thaksin University, Thailand. He is an expert in post-harvest technology. He was a visiting scholar at the Faculty of Agriculture, Yamaguchi University, Japan and many esteemed universities in Korea, and USA. Furthermore, he was granted for training course on “the Postharvest Physiology, Pathology and Handling of Fresh Commodities” Agricultural Research Organization (ARO), Israel. He has 14 years teaching experiences and has published numerous research papers in national and international publications.

Michael Affenzeller’s main research focus is on theoretical and practical aspects of evolutionary computation, genetic algorithms, and meta-heuristics in general. In 2001 he received his PhD in engineering sciences and in 2004 he received his habilitation in applied systems engineering, both from the Johannes Kepler University of Linz, Austria.

Michael Affenzeller is professor at the Upper Austria University of Applied Sciences, Campus Hagenberg, and head of the research group HEAL. From October 2014 to August 2022 he served as the head of studies for the Master degree program Software Engineering and as vice dean for R&D at the faculty of informatics, communications and media. Between 2019 and 2022 Michael Affenzeller acted as the scientific head of the Softwarepark Hagenberg. Since 2022 he took on the role of Provost of the Upper Austrian University of Applied Sciences.

Professor Affenzeller commenced his role as WTUN Chair beginning 1 August 2025 for a period of two years.

Ciarán Ó hAnnracháin has worked in tertiary education, both public and private, for over 30 years in the Irish, UK, US, and Swiss education systems, predominantly working in the field of Hospitality and Tourism Management. He has held several academic management roles in Switzerland and Ireland for the past 20 years and has been a member of a range of national advisory panels in both Hospitality & Tourism and Higher Education. He holds an undergraduate degree from Trinity College Dublin, a master’s degree from both University College Dublin and Waterford Institute of Technology, and a doctoral degree from University of Sheffield. He was Project Manager in Letterkenny Institute of Technology for merger of GMIT. IT Sligo and LYIT to become the Atlantic Technological University in April 2022 with responsibility for Academic Strategy and Planning, Student Services, Internationalisation and External Engagement. He currently works as Director of Strategic Projects for the ATU Faculty of Business.

He is the outgoing Chair of the Operational Board of the World Technology University Network, facilitating collaboration between academics across the globe.

Dr. Wipawee Usaha currently serves as the Director of the Center for International Affairs at Suranaree University of Technology (SUT), Thailand. She is also the co-founder and R&D Advisor of an innovative health tech startup—a university research spin-off that developed wireless sensor insoles for fall prediction in the elderly. This is among SUT’s innovation which has been selected for display at the Thailand Pavilion during World Expo Osaka 2025.

Her work is dedicated to advancing affordable healthcare and wellness technologies for vulnerable populations, with a particular focus on the elderly and individuals with chronic health conditions.

Dr. Usaha’s research interests include wearable sensor technology, wireless sensor networks, signal processing, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, the Artificial Internet of Things (AIoT), and resource allocation in communication networks. She received her Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the Communications and Signal Processing Group, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Imperial College London, U.K.