Prof. Jeffrey P. Bakken 
Bradley University, USA

Biography: Jeffrey P. Bakken, is Professor of Special Education at Bradley University. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, and graduate degrees in the area of Special Education-Learning Disabilities from Purdue University.  Dr. Bakken has received the College of Education and the University Research Initiative Award, the College of Education Outstanding College Researcher Award, the College of Education Outstanding College Teacher Award, and the Outstanding University Teacher Award from Illinois State University.  He also just recently received the College of Education and Health Sciences Faculty Achievement Award for Research at Bradley University. His specific areas of interest include: learning disabilities, emotional and behavioral disorders, reading comprehension, response to intervention, collaboration, transition, teacher effectiveness, assessment, learning strategies, assistive technology, Smart Classrooms and Smart Universities.  He has published over 220 works that include books, chapters, journal articles, proceedings at international conferences, audio tapes, encyclopedia articles, newsletter articles, book reviews, a monograph, a manual, and one publisher website.  He has also made over 275 presentations at International/National and Regional/State conferences. Lastly, he has authored or co-authored numerous grants totaling over $1,000,000.00.

 

Prof. Maricar S. Prudente 
De La Salle University, Philippines

Biography: Dr. Maricar S. Prudente is presently a Distinguished Professor of the Department of Science Education at De La Salle University-Manila. Professor Prudente completed her Ph.D. in Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology at Ehime University, Japan under a Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Ronpaku Fellow Grant. As an educator, Dr. Prudente has served as administrator in various capacities at De La Salle University Manila. Dr. Prudente has also served as a resource person, facilitator and coordinator in various seminars, workshops and training programs for Science teachers dealing with action research, environmental issues, science education, and technology integration. Since 2012, her research interests and advocacies were focused on environmental monitoring of persistent pollutants. global climate change literacy and innovative approaches in teaching science. Her involvement in research was recognized in 2015 when she was awarded the Lasallian Pillar of Excellence in Research by De La Salle University Manila. Dr. Prudente was also the recipient of the 2015 Lifetime National Achievement Award of the National Research Council of the Philippine. Moreover, Prof. Prudente was recognized as the 2018 Outstanding Filipino JSPS Fellow in the field of Education by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS).

 

Dr. Alexandre St-Vincent Villeneuve  
Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), Canada

Biography: Dr. Alexandre St-Vincent Villeneuve is an academic researcher and multi-entrepreneur working at the intersection of generative artificial intelligence and education, with a focus on pedagogical innovation and large-scale educational implementation. He holds an MBA from the University of Sherbrooke and a PhD in Artificial Intelligence from the University of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM), and has completed graduate-level studies in law at McGill University and in business management at HEC Montreal. He is the creator of the CLEF program, an initiative developed in Canada that has demonstrated positive outcomes in reducing dropout and enhancing learner engagement in underserved educational contexts, and which is currently being expanded through academic collaborations in Southeast Asia. His work has been published and presented in leading international venues, including IEEE, ACM, AMCIS, and the Academy of Management (AoM). His research and publications have received support through competitive funding schemes and institutional research programs, reflecting his commitment to translating technological innovation into real-world solutions that generate meaningful impact.

 

Asst. Prof. Chandra Reka 
Xiamen University Malaysia, Malaysia

Biography:  Assistant Professor Dr. Chandra Reka Ramachandiran is the Head of Programme (Software Engineering) at Xiamen University Malaysia. Her research expertise spans Teaching and Learning Tools, Human-Computer Interaction, Mixed Reality, Artificial Intelligence, and Affective Engineering (Kansei Engineering).

An accomplished researcher, Dr. Chandra has presented and published extensively in renowned conferences and high-impact journals. She has successfully secured multiple national and international research grants, reflecting her strong contributions to the field. She was also awarded the prestigious JASSO Scholarship, a research collaboration between the University of Malaya and Chiba University, Japan.

Beyond research, Dr. Chandra is actively involved in the academic community, serving as a reviewer and technical committee member for numerous ACM and IEEE conferences, along with other international events. She is deeply committed to both teaching and research, continuously advancing the field of Software Engineering, Artificial Intelligence and other Emerging Technologies.

 

Assoc. Prof. Mark Anthony Camilleri  
University of Malta, Malta

Biography:  Mark Anthony CAMILLERI, Ph.D. (Edinburgh), MBA, M.Sc. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Corporate Communication at the University of Malta, Malta. He was a visiting academic (Fulbrighter) at NorthWestern University in Evanston, USA (in 2022). Prof. Camilleri was featured among the world's top 2% scientists in Elsevier's "Updated science-wide author databases of standardized citation indicators". In 2025, he achieved a global rank (ns) of 962 and was listed 31st among Business & Management researchers. Recently, his publications placed 3rd (highly ranked scholar) in Education, 18th in Sustainable Development, and 397th Overall (across all fields), according to ScholarGPS data that cover the last 5 years.
He is regularly engaged as a Foreign Expert Reviewer of Horizon Europe including of Pathfinder AND of Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), as well as of several European Research Councils. Prof. Camilleri has been recognized as an "excellent reviewer" as well as a "top peer reviewer" by Web of Science and Publons. He also received a Literati Award by Emerald, for his "outstanding reviews".

 

 

Asst. Prof. Dr. Anthi Karatrantou  
Department of Education and Social Work, University of Patras, Greece

 

Speech title: Educational Technology - Emerging Technologies and their Impacts

Biography:  She is an Assistant professor at the Department of Educational Sciences and Social Work, University of Patras with teaching and researching interests in the field of ICTs in education focusing on Emerging Technologies in education, STEAM education and innovative approaches in teaching and learning. She has 35 years’ experience in education at secondary and University level education, adult education, teacher training and education of vulnerable groups. She has been teaching at undergraduate, post-graduate and doctoral level students at various universities in Greece (University of Patras, Hellenic Open University, University of Crete, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, School of Technological and pedagogical Education). She has been working in more than 40 National and European Research projects as a researcher and scientific fellow of various Universities in Greece (University of Patras, Hellenic Open University, University of Crete, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, University of Ioannina, School of Technological and pedagogical Education).She is member of the authors’ group of one (1) Book, editor for the compatibility with the Open and Distance Learning for two (2) books, member of the editor’s group of one (1) Book, co-author of ten (15) book chapters. She is the author of 45 publications in International and Greek journals and 130 publications in International and Greek conference proceedings.

 

 

Dr. Karl Jones 
Liveprool John Moores University, UK

Biography: Dr. Karl O. JONES is a Subject Head in the School of Engineering and Built Environment at Liverpool John Moores University in the United Kingdom, he has worked for over 35 years. He graduated with a BEng(Hons) in Electrical and Electronic Engineering, before undertaking a PhD in Fermentation Control. His research interests include Artificial Intelligence, Audio & Video Forensics, Maritime Risk Analysis and Engineering Education, with 15 completed PhDs and 6 current students. He has considerable experience in PhD examination, both as Internal and External Examiner. He was part of an EU funded Europe-wide project to develop curricula for Computing at Bachelor, Masters and PhD level. Karl is on the Editorial Board of eight Journals, and has been on the Technical Committee for over one hundred conferences. In relation to his work in Audio & Video Forensics, Karl has provided expert opinion for Reuters, The Guardian newspaper and the BBC. In his spare time, Karl enjoys photography and genealogy.

 

 

Dr. Vinh To 
University of Tasmania, Australia

Biography: Dr Vinh To is a Senior Lecturer in English Curriculum and Pedagogy and a Graduate Research Coordinator in the School of Education, Arts and Society, at the University of Tasmania, Australia. Her research interest includes educational linguistics, English, literacy and languages education, and online education. Dr To is Founder of the Systemic Functional Linguistics Interest Group (SFLIG) and lead chief investigator of the Australia-ASEAN Academics Forum: Online Education during COVID-19 and beyond (AAAF), funded by the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. She is the lead Convenor of SFLIG Conferences and AAAF Webinars, and Editor of SFLIG books and special issues. Dr To is the sole, lead and co-writer of a number of journal articles, book chapters, and media stories. She has published in top journals such as Australian Journal of Linguistics, Linguistics and Human Sciences, Australian Journal of Language and Literacy, English in Australia, International Journal of Early Years Education, and in highly regarded books with reputable publishers such as Cambridge University Press. Her research activities appear in media news across the Australian and ASEAN regions. Dr To has been invited to deliver international keynote and plenary speeches in Vietnam, Spain, Lithuania and Indonesia. She has been awarded a Commendation for Research Innovation and Impact, and a number of teaching awards such as Teaching Merit Certificates, Deputy Vice-Chancellor’s Commendation Letter, Certificate for Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning, Vice-Chancellor's Teaching Innovation Award, in recognition of her excellent teaching in blended learning or fully online courses at the University of Tasmania. See Dr To’s full profile at this link. https://discover.utas.edu.au/Vinh.To/about

 

 

Prof. Delfín Ortega-Sánchez 
University of Burgos, Spain

Biography: Prof. Dr. Delfín Ortega-Sánchez is Full Professor of Didactics of Social Sciences at the University of Burgos. He holds three doctoral degrees (PhD in Didactics of History and Social Sciences [Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona], PhD in Education [University of Burgos], and PhD in the History of the Americas [University of Extremadura]), and his academic trajectory has been recognized with three Extraordinary Doctoral Awards. His research focuses on education for democratic citizenship, the curricular inclusion and didactic treatment of controversial issues and social problems, equality and diversity, transdisciplinarity, and the pedagogical use of educational technology. Currently, he serves as Vice-Rector for Institutional Relations, Culture, and Social Projection at the University of Burgos, and as Director of the Chair in Human Rights and Democratic Culture-Auschwitz Birkenau Institute, described as the first worldwide in collaboration with the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum. In recognition of his impact, he was nominated among the world’s top ten Social Sciences researchers in the seventh edition of the Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN) Prize 2022. He has also been awarded the First Prize in Transformative Education Research 2025 by the Global Citizenship Foundation, in partnership with UNESCO MGIEP, in recognition of his research trajectory in the field of education for democratic citizenship.

 

 

Prof. Karsten Böhm,  
University of Applied Sciences, Austria

Biography: Karsten Böhm studied Computer Science with a specialization in Automatic Language Processing and Intelligent Systems at the Universities in Leipzig (Germany) and London (UK). After obtaining his degree in Computer Science (M.Sc.) he worked for several years in the industry, mostly for tech-nology-oriented companies in the area of applied text-mining and information extraction technologies and applied them in several industrial Knowledge Management projects. He returned to the Leipzig University in 2003 to work as a researcher in several funded research projects mostly focused on the topic of business process-oriented Knowledge Management. Since 2006, he is holding a Research Professorship for Business Informatics at the University of Applied Science FH Kufstein Tirol (Aus-tria). His research interests are centered around IT-based Knowledge Management and its application areas such as the support of Innovation Processes in their early stages and the use in the sector of Higher Education.
In Kufstein he had been actively researching in a number of research projects on regional, national and European level. In most of these projects, he worked in the role of the local coordinator for Kufstein and as Technical Manager for two larger European research projects. He received the Award of Excellence for Research from the FH Kufstein Tirol in 2012. The teaching activities of Karsten Böhm in Kufstein and other universities in Europe ranging over a broad area of topics includ-ing Software Development (mobile, web), Networking, Operating Systems, Web based Information Systems, modern Information and Knowledge Management, Communication & Collaboration Sys-tems and Systemic Innovation. He was giving guest lectures in Bergen (NO), Rotterdam (NL), Ali-cante (ES), Antwerp (BE) and Katowice (PL) in addition to frequent occasions in Germany and Aus-tria.
Exchanges into the consulting industry (PNO Group, Ciaotech Srl. Rome, Italy) in 2006, 2007 and 2008 complemented the academic life with experiences from R&D activities in the industry. Current-ly he is supporting accreditation agencies in Germany (FIBAA) and Austria (AQA) as an external expert. From 2016-2021 he was initiating and organizing the TEDxFH-Kufstein and holds an unlim-ited TEDx license.
From 2010 to 2021 he served as Deputy Director of Studies and subsequently as Director of Studies for a number of degree programs at the University of Applied Sciences in Kufstein Tirol, namely the Bachelor Programs Business Informatics and Web Business & Technology and the Master Programs Web Communication & Information Systems and Data Science & Intelligent Analytics. The research activities of the group have been carried out in the WEBTA-Institute on Web-based Technologies and Applications, which Karsten Böhm led as a founding director from 2017 to 2021.
His main research interests are in the area of IT-based Knowledge Management and the development of new software systems for the operational support of Knowledge processed in organizations. He currently focused his research activities on the support of higher educational organizations with Prebuilt-Information Spaces for education (PreBIS-ED) using semantic technologies and agile ap-proaches for new problem-based-learning aspects. The use of Generative-AI with respect to techno-logical choices and the impact on the usage in education settings and beyond has also become a topic in the last years.
Karsten Böhm serves the academic community with being a member of different program committees for European and international conferences and supports the International Academy, Research, and Industry Association (IARIA) for several years in numerous roles and was awarded the title of an IARIA fellow in 2023.

 

Prof. Malissa Maria Mahmud  
Sunway University, Malaysia

Biography: Malissa Maria Mahmud is passionate about fostering inclusive, equitable, and lifelong access to high-quality education opportunities for all. Her research explores a broad spectrum of topics in instructional technologies, with a particular focus on post-pandemic modalities. Over the course of her professional career, she has received acclaim for her valuable contributions, presenting and publishing in esteemed conferences and journals. Notably, she has received accolades for research excellence and has been acknowledged for her excellence in teaching.

 

Prof. Atilla Wohllebe  
University of Applied Sciences Wedel, Germany

Biography: Atilla Wohllebe works as a Professor of E-Commerce and Digital Business Models at the University of Applied Sciences Wedel, Germany, and responsible for the E-Commerce Bachelor and Master programs and the Marketing, Media & AI Bachelor program. Besides, he is a managing partner at the Open Access publisher Wohllebe & Ross. He has published several books, book chapters and academic papers and has presented his research at various conferences. Prior to his academic career, Atilla Wohllebe worked in leading German e-commerce and retail companies. He is a member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and of the Special Interest Group on Computer-Human Interaction (SIGCHI) within the ACM, the German Society for Online Research (DGOF) and the International Association of Online Engineering (IAOE). Atilla Wohllebe completed his PhD at MATE Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences on consumer attitudes towards mobile apps in retail.