Alexander Atrio L. Lopez is an Instructor in Philosophy at the University of the Philippines Diliman where he is also finishing his MA Philosophy thesis. From the same institution, he graduated BA Philosophy, summa cum laude. He also has a degree in BS Basic Medical Sciences from the University of the Philippines Manila. His research interests are ethics, philosophy of mind, and aesthetics. Contact him via [email protected].

Leander Penaso Marquez is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of the Philippines Diliman. He currently holds a graduate degree in Philosophy and another one in Education. He has published a number of articles in local and international journals as well as presented some of his research papers in various conferences in Asia and Europe. He has facilitated trainings of teachers in the teaching of subjects such as “Introduction to the Philosophy of the Human Person” and “Trends, Networks, and Critical Thinking in the 21st Century Culture”. Incidentally, he has also authored a textbook on the latter under the same title. Leander sits as co-chair of the Bioethics Working Group of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities Global Health Program (APRU-GHP). He is also serving as Junior Ambassador to the Philippines for the Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN). His research interests include Ethics, Epistemology, Philosophy for Children, Philosophy of Education, and Philosophy and Popular Culture.

Mellissa Withers, PhD, MHS is Associate Professor at the Keck School of Medicine in the Department of Preventive Medicine. She is based at the University of Southern California Institute on Inequalities in Global Health. She also is also Director of the Global Health Program of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities, a non-profit network of 56 universities. She received a PhD from the Department of Community Health Sciences at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health with a minor in cultural anthropology. She also holds a Master’s in International Health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a BA in international development from UC Berkeley. Her research interests lie in community participatory research, mental health, gender-based violence, immigrant health, and global sexual and reproductive health. Dr Withers is the editor of two books: Global Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health Across the Lifecourse, and Global Health Leadership: Case Studies from the Asia-Pacific (in press). She has also published more than 40 scientific articles and serves on the editorial boards of six international global health journals. She also writes a blog on human trafficking titled Modern-Day Slavery for Psychology Today.

King L Chow, PhD, as a Professor of Life Science, Chemical & Biological Engineering, serves as the Director of Interdisciplinary Programs Office overseeing Environment and Sustainability, Public Policy, Risk Management, Technology Management and various innovation programs at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. He heads the Dean of Students Office supporting various student-oriented schemes beyond academic issues, including exchange program, career development and experiential learning. While his research focuses on genetics, development, evolution and synthetic biology, he engages in various teaching pedagogy initiatives and curricular development projects, teaches project courses, experiential courses, online courses; spearheads liberal arts and interdisciplinary education at the juncture cutting across science, engineering, social science and humanity at both UG and PG levels. He was the inaugural School of Science Teaching Award winner and was awarded the Michael G. Gale Medal of distinguished teaching at HKUST.

Catherine Zhou, PhD is a Teaching Associate at the Office of the Dean of Engineering, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST). Prior to this she worked at the Centre for Learning Enhancement And Research at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. She has a PhD degree in computer science and engineering and currently focuses on research postgraduate student education. Her teaching and research interests include research integrity, emotional resilience and intelligence, and mentorship. She is in charge of the research postgraduate student professional development program within the School of Engineering. Catherine is interested in student-centered teaching and learning strategies, such as e-learning, blended learning, flipped classroom, and experiential learning.

María de Jesús Medina-Arellano, PhD obtained her law degree from the Autonomous University of Nayarit, Mexico (2004). In January 2008 she graduated with the equivalent of an MPhil at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). During her postgraduate degree she focused on the new paradigm of Health Law, Bioethics and Human Rights in Mexico. She obtained her PhD in Bioethics and Medical Jurisprudence in July, 2012, from the School of Law (Centre for Social Ethics and Policy and the Institute for Science, Ethics and Innovation) at the University of Manchester. Her PhD research focused on the regulation of stem cell research in developing countries (Mexico as a case study). From 2013-2014, Maria worked as Deputy of the Judicial School in the Local Court of Justice in Nayarit. Since September 2014 she has been a full-time researcher at the Institute for Legal Research at UNAM. Since January 2015, she has also been the Deputy of the College of Bioethics, a civil association in Mexico that gathers scientist and physicians working in the area of bioethics from practical and academic perspectives. Since April 2017, she has been a member of the advisory board at the National Commission of Bioethics in Mexico (CONBIOÉTICA). Since January 2016, she has coordinated the Diploma on Bioethics, Health and Law which is offered in the Institute for Legal Research.

Akira Shibanuma has carried out community health and economic research in resource-limiting settings for eight years. He is based in the Graduate School of Medicine at the University of Tokyo and conducts positive deviance research in Cambodia. His specialties are hygiene and public health, applied health sciences, and development economics.

Leonardo D. De Castro (PhD) is a professor in the Department of Philosophy, University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City, where he previously served as Department Chair for 9 years. He was Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Biomedical Ethics, National University of Singapore and Editor-in-Chief of the Asian Bioethics Review from 2008 to 2016. He chairs the Philippine Health Research Ethics Board, the agency responsible for promoting ethical health research in the country. Dr De Castro has served on the National Bioethics Advisory Committee and the National Transplant Ethics Committee. He has been President of the Asian Bioethics Association, Vice Chair of the UNESCO International Bioethics Committee, Vice Chair of the Forum for Ethics Review Committees in Asia and the Pacific, and a Bioethics Consultant to the United Nations, the World Health Organization, the European Union and the European Commission. He represented the Philippines in the UNESCO Inter-Governmental Bioethics Committee.

Mariam Davtyan is an Assistant Professor of Research Pediatrics at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California (USC) and has been studying HIV/AIDS for more than 15 years. Since 2005, she has conducted pediatric and adult HIV/AIDS research studies at the LAC+USC Maternal, Child & Adolescent/Adult Center (MCA Center) for Infectious Diseases and Virology, focusing on the effects of antiretroviral medications (ARVs) on children and pregnant women. She is the founder and liaison of the MCA Center’s English-speaking Community Advisory Board (CAB), a forum consisting of women of color living with HIV who provide critical feedback on clinical services and community needs. Dr. Davtyan’s work with the CAB inspired her to study HIV-associated stigma, a significant stressor with many devastating social, physical and psychological consequences. Since 2012, her research has also focused on HIV-associated stigma and discrimination in healthcare settings and within provider-patient interactions, as well as the impact of internalized HIV stigma on social and health outcomes. She has received multiple grants from the University of California Global Health Institute, the University of California Irvine’s Newkirk Center for Science and Society, the Clinical Translational Science Institute at USC, and the Health Resources and Services Administration to support her research agenda. Her most recent work includes examining the impact of photo-stories on internalized HIV stigma and engagement in care in chronically non-adherent patients, appraising the association between internalized HIV stigma and ARV adherence and viral suppression in women of color, assessing resilience factors such as mindfulness, personal mastery and social support in long-term HIV survivors, and evaluating the impact of COVID-19 on the day-to-day lives of older adults living with HIV in the Coachella Valley. Dr. Davtyan’s research has been exhibited at many professional conferences, including the United States Conference on HIV/AIDS, the International Conference on Stigma at Howard University, the American Public Health Association Expo, and the International AIDS Conference.

Mellissa Withers, PhD, MHS is Associate Professor at the Keck School of Medicine in the Department of Preventive Medicine. She is based at the University of Southern California Institute on Inequalities in Global Health. She also is also Director of the Global Health Program of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities, a non-profit network of 56 universities. She received a PhD from the Department of Community Health Sciences at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health with a minor in cultural anthropology. She also holds a Master’s in International Health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a BA in international development from UC Berkeley. Her research interests lie in community participatory research, mental health, gender-based violence, immigrant health, and global sexual and reproductive health. Dr Withers is the editor of two books: Global Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health Across the Lifecourse, and Global Health Leadership: Case Studies from the Asia-Pacific (in press). She has also published more than 40 scientific articles and serves on the editorial boards of six international global health journals. She also writes a blog on human trafficking titled Modern-Day Slavery for Psychology Today.

Alexander Atrio L. Lopez is an Instructor in Philosophy at the University of the Philippines Diliman where he is also finishing his MA Philosophy thesis. From the same institution, he graduated BA Philosophy, summa cum laude. He also has a degree in BS Basic Medical Sciences from the University of the Philippines Manila. His research interests are ethics, philosophy of mind, and aesthetics. Contact him via [email protected].

Leander Penaso Marquez is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of the Philippines Diliman. He currently holds a graduate degree in Philosophy and another one in Education. He has published a number of articles in local and international journals as well as presented some of his research papers in various conferences in Asia and Europe. He has facilitated trainings of teachers in the teaching of subjects such as “Introduction to the Philosophy of the Human Person” and “Trends, Networks, and Critical Thinking in the 21st Century Culture”. Incidentally, he has also authored a textbook on the latter under the same title. Leander sits as co-chair of the Bioethics Working Group of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities Global Health Program (APRU-GHP). He is also serving as Junior Ambassador to the Philippines for the Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN). His research interests include Ethics, Epistemology, Philosophy for Children, Philosophy of Education, and Philosophy and Popular Culture.

Mellissa Withers, PhD, MHS is Associate Professor at the Keck School of Medicine in the Department of Preventive Medicine. She is based at the University of Southern California Institute on Inequalities in Global Health. She also is also Director of the Global Health Program of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities, a non-profit network of 56 universities. She received a PhD from the Department of Community Health Sciences at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health with a minor in cultural anthropology. She also holds a Master’s in International Health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a BA in international development from UC Berkeley. Her research interests lie in community participatory research, mental health, gender-based violence, immigrant health, and global sexual and reproductive health. Dr Withers is the editor of two books: Global Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health Across the Lifecourse, and Global Health Leadership: Case Studies from the Asia-Pacific (in press). She has also published more than 40 scientific articles and serves on the editorial boards of six international global health journals. She also writes a blog on human trafficking titled Modern-Day Slavery for Psychology Today.

Nenita Baltazar-Panaligan is a Registered Nurse in the Philippines and Associate Professor at Cavite State University College of Nursing (CvSU- CON), supervising nursing and allied health undergraduate students. Prof. Panaligan handles professional courses on Research, Nursing Leadership and Management, Maternal and Child Care, and Community Health Nursing. She served as the first Clinical Coordinator and an Acting Dean of the CvSU CON, and managed the Research and Development Unit of the college. She is also involved in monitoring and supervision of the research and projects, ethical reviews and research linkages of the university. She has also served on the CvSU Ethics Review Board (ERB) and is an External /Medical Member of the De La Salle Health Sciences Institute Independent Ethics Committee (IEC). Prior to joining CvSU, Prof. Panaligan received her Master of Arts in Nursing degree major in Nursing Administration from the University of Santo Tomas and is pursuing her Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing at University of the Philippines Manila. She is also a member of the Philippine Council for Health Research and Development Region IV-A Consortium Research Management Committee. As current president of the Philippine Nurses Association Cavite Chapter, much of her work focuses on promoting nurses’ welfare, social relevance and development. She is also the president of the Philippine Nursing Research Society Cavite Cell. Most of her research and extension works are focused on maternal and child care, community and public health, ethics, disaster research, gender and development, nursing education, administration and policy development.

Alex Phang Kean Chang is a clinical scientist by profession who earns a PhD in Pathology, dual master’s degrees in health research Ethics and Medical Sciences (Pathology), besides holding a bachelor’s degree in Biohealth Science. He is currently serving as the Secretary (Manager) at the University of Malaya Medical Centre-Medical Research Ethics Committee where his core duties include managing the IRB and assisting in study protocol screening. Dr Alex received several ethics-related pieces of training and fellowships under World Health Organization, Department of Bioethics, NIH United States and WCG IRB-New York University Langone Health. He has a great interest in researching the ethical issues surrounding emerging technologies and epidemic ethics as well as the quality improvement of IRB’s services to ensure the protection of human subjects in health research. He is currently one of the faculty members for the Master of Health Research Ethics at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya. Lastly, Dr Alex has a tremendous interest in medical humanities to shape future medical or healthcare providers who are creative, empathic, and intellectually adaptable. He is appointed as an affiliate member of the Academy Sciences of Malaysia (YSN-ASM) since 2020.

Indri Hapsari Susilowati graduated from the Faculty of Public Health, Universitas Indonesia (UI), majoring in Occupational Health and Safety in 1999 (Bachelor degree) and 2008 (Master degree). She earned her Ph.D. in Human Science Design from Kyushu University Japan in 2012. Her interest research in ergonomics, human factors, aging, and safe transportation. She is currently the Head of Occupational Health and Safety Department, Faculty of Public Health, Universitas Indonesia, since 2016. She is also teaching Law and Ethics in Health courses in Health Cluster Science, Universitas Indonesia. In this course, students are taught to understand health problems with bioethical principles, both clinical/personal and community / public health. This course is attended by students from the UI Faculty of Public Health, Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing, and Pharmacy. She has achieved numerous awards at international conferences and has many publications in international and national journals. She also is writing a book about Indonesian Fall Risk Assessment Tools (I-FRAT) and Health Promotion in the Workplace.

Honey Libertine Achanzar-Labor is Professor 5 in the University of the Philippines Manila and Program Coordinator of its BA Philippine Arts – Cultural Heritage and Arts Management Program. She received her BA Humanities (Pre-Medicine track) degree from the University of the Philippines, completed the MS Medical Anthropology coursework, and has a doctorate in Philippine Studies from the Asian Center in the same university, with a dissertation anchored on Anthropology of Art. She is a regular member of her university’s Research Ethics Board (UPREB), and a UP Centennial and One UP Professorial Chair Awardee. She was also named as University Artist by the UP system under the lens of its Arts Productivity Program, acknowledging her contribution in creative research, publication, and promotion of cultural heritage. She also served as Director of UP Manila’s Office of Student Affairs from 2011-2014. Her research interests include Southeast Asian Art, Anthropology of Art, and Medical Anthropology. Her most recent publications include a chapter in the Scopus-indexed book Religious Tourism in Asia: Tradition and Change Through Case Studies (Oxford: CABI, 2018), and journal articles: “Calle Faura: Cultural Heritage Amidst Conflict in Ermita, Manila” in The Calle Faura Journal 2017; 7-9 (ISBN 2599-4298) and “The Ibaloi of Benguet as Active Agents in Health Negotiations” in Philippine Journal of Health Research and Development (2018). As a response to the Marawi siege, she convened the conference, The Lost and the Retrieved: Cultural Heritage Amidst Conflict in 2017 and is Founding Executive Director of The Faura Project, Inc.

Zaira Janet Gutiérrez Contreras is a psychologist in charge of the prevention and attention to gender violence module of the Specialized Unit for Gender Equality and Equity. Zaira is a psychologist from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). She has a specialty as a sexuality educator and gender violence psychotherapist. She completed the diploma in Bioethics, Health and Biolaw at the Institute of Legal Research of UNAM and the APRU Course on Ethics in Global Health in 2020. Her areas of interest are gender, sexuality, violence prevention, comprehensive well-being and bioethics. Her work is dedicated to the promotion of sexual and reproductive rights, in addition to providing sexuality education workshops to populations of various ages. She also provides accompaniment to women who decide on their bodies. Her motto “Educate to prevent” inspires her to accompany people of all ages to provide information and create experiences from teaching. She currently works in the gender unit of the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana unit Cuajimalpa (UAM-Cuajimalpa) providing care to people who have experienced gender-based violence and promoting actions to prevent it, as well as providing advice to offenders.