Meet the 2015/2016 ASEAN Science and Technology Fellows

As an ASEAN-U.S. S&T Fellow, Dr. Geraldino is working with the Department of Environmental and Natural Resources to improve the governance and financial management of marine biodiversity areas in the Philippines. Currently, he is also a member of the Philippine Aquatic Red List Committee, under Department of Agriculture.

Dr. Geraldino received his Bachelor’s Degree in Biology (2001) and Master’s Degree in Marine Biology (2004) from the University of San Carlos in the Philippines and his Ph.D. in Organismal Biology in Chungnam National University in South Korea (2008).

As an ASEAN-U.S. Science and Technology (S&T) Fellow, Mr. Ly focused on amending the Cambodia Fisheries Law to protect poor fishing communities in coastal areas. He is currently working as a consultant in Singapore.

Mr. Ly holds dual Master’s Degrees in Agronomy from the Royal Academy of Cambodia (2006) and Development Studies from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Switzerland (2012). He also holds a post-graduate degree in Climate Change from the UNESCO-IHE in the Netherlands (2014).

Under the ASEAN-U.S. S&T Fellowship, Dr. Yin analyzed and developed recomendations on “payments for ecosystem services” strategy for biodiversity conservation and local livelihood improvement in Cambodia. He is currently a professor in the faculty of development studies at Royal University of Phnom Penh and serves an adjunct faculty member at the America University of Phnom Penh.

Dr. Yin has a Bachelor’s Degree from the Institute of Foreign Language (2000), Master’s Degree in Tourism Development from Royal University of Phnom Penh (2003), and Ph.D. in Natural Resource Science and Management from University of Minnesota in the U.S. (2012).

Through the ASEAN-U.S. S&T Fellowship, Dr. Rizali analysed the management of trans-boundary protected areas, particularly the Heart of Borneo, which is the largest trans-boundary tropical forest in Southeast Asia, crossing the borders of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Bruner Darussalam. He also reviewed existing land user management regulations and made recommendations for strengthening stakeholder cooperation to combat land degradation and advance sustainable land management, specifically for palm oil plantations. He is currently working as a lecturer and researcher for the Department of Plant Pests and Diseases at the University of Brawijaya in Indonesia.

Dr. Rizali has a Bachelor’s Degree in Plant Protection (2000) and Master’s Degree in Entomology (2006), both from Bogor Agricultural Institute in Indonesia, and a Ph.D. from the University of Goettingen in Germany (2011).

Through the ASEAN-U.S. S&T Fellowship, Dr. Narita, worked to connect the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (Manila) to Indonesia’s centres of excellence, including National Science and Technology Parks, to promote a biodiversity-based economy. She also provided inputs to Indonesia’s biodiversity. She is currently supporting a newly established Indonesian Science Fund, developing their strategic plain and drafting a policy recommendation for Parliament emphasising the importance of basic science for Indonesia’s growth.

Dr. Narita received her dual-major Bachelor’s Degree in Biochemistry and Biology (1997) and Ph.D. in Biochemistry, Cellular, and Molecular Biology from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee in the U.S. (2002)

Through the ASEAN-U.S. S&T Fellowship, Dr. Budhijanto drafted a roadmap linking academics and industrial practitioners to conduct join work toward a more sustainable, productive palm oil industry in Indonesia. She also coordinated with the ASEAN Centre for Energy opening up discourse on ASEAN’s current energy situation and the role palm oil-based biofuels might play to contribute to clean energy in the region. Dr. Budhijanto is currently an Associate Professor at Gadjah Mada University (GMU) in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. She recently applied communication skills garnered during her fellowship year to help GMU students, the winners of the YSEALI World of Food Innovation Challenge, prepare presentations for VIP audiences in several ASEAN countries and the United States.

Dr. Budhijanto received both her Bachelor’s (1996) and Master’s (1999) Degree from the Chemical Engineering Department of Gadjah Mada University in Indonesia. She received her Ph.D. in CHemical Engineering from West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia in the U.S. (2003).

Through the ASEAN-U.S. S&T Fellowship, Dr. Sakimin was involved in the revision of Malaysia’s Renewable Energy (RE) Policy. She was also appointed by her host ministry to serve on the Research and Innovation Working Committee of the National Green Technology & Climate Change Council (MTHPI) Secretariate. In collaboration with the MTHPI, Dr. Sakimin presented policy recommendations on biogas energy to her host ministry, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, as well as to the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology, and Water. She is currently working as a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Crop Science, Faculty of Agriculture, at Universiti Putra Malaysia. As noted above, along with her S&T Fellow colleagues from Malaysia and Vietnam, she is supporting research on “Green Energy, Smart Agriculture”.

Dr. Sakimin holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Horticulture (2002) and Master’s Degree in Pomology (2006) from the University Putra Malaysia. She received her Ph.D. from the Department of Environmental and Agriculture at Curtin University in Australia (2011) under a scholarship from Malaysia’s Ministry of Higher Education.

During his ASEAN-U.S. S&T Fellowship, Dr. Myint was involved in the preparation of Myanmar’s National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2015-2020. He also developed a new biodiversity curriculum for the Ministry of Education and conducted awareness-raising on biodiversity conservation and sustainability for the general public, government institutions, and universities. Dr. Ko Myint’s policy recommendation to designate two islands as natural protected areas led to their recent acceptance as one of the new Ramsar sites of wildlife sanctuary in Myanmar.

He is currently working as a biodiversity consultant for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Conservation in Naypitaw and as a part-time coordinator for the Myanmar Marine Turtle Conservation project funded by Marine Turtle Fund Association-America. Since the S&T Fellowship, he has also given presentations on the conservation of marine turtles at events in Singapore and the United States.

Dr. Myint received his Bachelor’s Degree (2000), Master’s Degree (2002), and Ph.D. (2007) from the University of Yangon.

Through the ASEAN-U.S. S&T Fellowship, Mr. Panpeng promoted the sustainability of coastal areas and community livelihood through climate change adaptation measures in Thailand. In his position with the Department of Fisheries in the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, he prepares a report entitled Guidance for Mainstreaming Seawater Inundation-Relevant Issues into Sectoral Development Plans Associated with ASEAN Policies in Climate Change, which proposed the use of climate modelling, GIS, and remote sensing technology among others to address the scale of the issue. The report represented an important step toward integrating this pressing issue into government development planning in Thailand.

Currently a Policy and Planning Analyst with Thailand’s National Economic and Social Development Board, Dr. Panpeng focuses on regional and spatial development, including preparing natural resources-relevant information, particularly for climate change issues. He continues to draw upon skills honed through the Fellowship, providing policy recommendations, crafting development strategies, and conducting research, particularly on how climate change affects livelihood in coastal zones.

Mr. Panpeng holds a Bachelor’s Degree from the Faculty of Fisheries (1999( and a Master’s Degree from the Faculty of Economics (2007) at Kasetsart University in Thailand. He is currently a Ph.D. candidate at the Asian Institute of Technology.

Through the ASEAN-U.S. S&T Fellowship, Dr. Setthapun developed technical guidelines for community power development specifically related to renewable energy applications. More specifically, she visited communities and surveyed energy volunteers, representatives, and the general public to collect data to inform the creation of a user-friendly database for community renewable energy technology for the Ministry of Energy in Thailand.

Dr. Setthapun is currently Dean at the Asian Development College for Community Economy and Technology at Chiang Mai Rajabhat University, She also develops and manages the Chiang Mai World Green City, a living laboratory for 100% renewable energy application and green technologies. She was the first-place winner of the 2016 ASEAN-U.S. Science Prize for Women for her work to develop affordable and appropriate sustainable energy systems to enhance livelihood in small and rural Thai communities.

Dr. Setthapun holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemical Engineering from King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi in Thailand (2000). She completer her Master’s Degree (2002) and Ph.D. (2006) in Chemical Engineering on a Fulbright Scholarship at the University of Michigan in the U.S.

Through the ASEAN-U.S. S&T  Fellowship, Dr. Bui helped Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to develop formal comprehensive guidelines to improve water resource management in Vietnam. He also implemented activities to bridge science-policy gaps as they relate to water, including enhancing regional water cooperation by building a regional information and networking platform and managing a website to share water management information. He is currently Deputy Director of the Water Resource Monitoring Department at the National Centre for Water Resources Planning & Investigation and founder of the Vietnam Water Cooperative Initiative under the auspice of the Vietnam Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

Dr. Bui holds a Bachelor’s Degree from the Water Resource University in Vietnam (2005) and a Ph.D. from Tokyo Metropolitan University in Japan (2011).

As an ASEAN-U.S. S&T Fellow, Dr. Tung supported the Ministry of Construction (MOC) to develop energy efficiency and green growth policies, including the launch of the Green Growth Action Plan for Construction Sector in May 2017. He also helped to develop a database of energy-efficient building materials, which is expected to be pun on the MOC website by mid 2017 and joined a team to survey 280 buildings across Vietnam to initiate the first national database of building energy performance for the MOC. He is currently working as a lecturer with the Schools of Economics and Management at the Hanoi University of Science and Technology where he teaches technology management, decision modelling, and project management. He also works as a consultant on energy efficiency and green building development for the MOC’s Department of Science Technology and Environment.

Dr. Tung earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Electronic Engineering from Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Vietnam (1995), and his Master’s Degree (1997) and Ph.D. (2001) in Industrial Engineering and Management from the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand.

Under the ASEAN-U.S. S&T Fellowship, Dr. Nguyen Duc Luong focused on comparing regulations and policies on energy efficiency for the building sector in Vietnam with those of other Asian countries and proposed modifications to enhance Vietnam’s current regulations on energy efficiency buildings toward promoting energy efficiency and savings for building sector. He is currently working as a lecturer and researcher with the Department of Environmental Technology and Management, Faculty of Environmental Engineering at the National University of Civil Engineering. Along with the 2015-16 S&T Fellows from Malaysia, Dr. Nguyen Duc Luong recently secured a collaborative research grant from IFS for a two-year project to address “Green Energy Smart Agriculture.”

Dr. Nguyen holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Engineering from NUCE Vietnam (2005), a Master’s Degree in Urban Environmental Management from the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand (2007), and a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (2011).