Prof. Norimichi Takenaka, Osaka Metropolitan University, Japan
"Characteristics of Air Pollutants in Ho Chi Minh City"

Professor Norimichi Takenaka is an accomplished researcher and educator affiliated with Osaka Metropolitan University. With a Ph.D. in Engineering and a diverse academic career, he has made notable contributions in environmental chemistry. His work encompasses various areas, including the development of analytical methods for pollutants, studies on ice chemistry, and research on atmospheric measurements. Over the years, Professor Takenaka has held positions at Osaka Prefecture University and contributed to the Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition. Currently, he serves as a Professor at Osaka Metropolitan University, specializing in sustainable system sciences. 

Dr. Takahiro Watari, Nagaoka University of Technology, Japan
"Development of biological wastewater treatment system for natural rubber processing wastewater"

Dr. Takahiro Watari is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Environment Engineering, at Nagaoka University of Technology, Japan. Dr. Watari obtained a Doctor of Engineering from Nagaoka University of Technology, Japan in 2018 and a Doctor of Chemical Engineering from Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Vietnam in 2022. Previously, he worked as a Special researcher at the UNSCO-IHE Institute for Water Education in the Netherlands and at the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. His research area is biological wastewater and water treatment, and he has several international collaboration research projects with Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, India, Kenya, and so on.

Assoc. Prof. Nguyen Hong Quan, Institute for Circular Economy Development, Vietnam 

"Circular economy development in Vietnam and potential research collaborations"

Dr. NGUYEN Hong Quan is currently an associate professor at the Vietnam National University – Ho Chi Minh city (VNU-HCM). He is leading a newly established Institute for Circular Economy Development (ICED) and also affiliated with socio-hydrology group at center of Water management and Climate Change (WACC), Institute for Environment and Resources (IER), VNU-HCM. He has a special interest in solving environmental related issues based on inter/trans-disciplinary study and by a strong partnership among academia-industry-government. He has been working in environmental hydrology (e.g. saline intrusion, flood/drought, water pollution) in Southern Vietnam over the past 20 years and expanded his expertise in other disciplines e.g. climate change adaptation/mitigation, circular economy, socio-ecological system, sustainability science. Dr. Nguyen has been leading and participating in number of projects (international, national, ministerial, provincial levels) with total funding of about 1,500,000 US Dollars. He has published actively at various (inter-)national journals, conferences/workshops including (co-) authored 80 ISI/Scopus indexed articles (75 % in Q1, Q2 and high impact ones e.g. Nature, Sustainable development, Sustainable Cities and Society, Science of The Total Environment). He currently serves as member of Editorial board of Circular Economy and Sustainability (Springer) and Frontier – Sustainability, section Circular Economy.

Assoc. Prof. To Thi Hien, VNUHCM - University of Science, Vietnam 

"Plastics and microplastics in different environments in Southern Vietnam"

Dr. Hien is currently an Associate Professor of the Faculty of Environment, University of Science, Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City (VNUHCM-US) and a member of IGAC-MANGO (International Global Atmospheric Chemistry Monsoon Asia and Oceania Networking Group). Hien obtained her Ph.D. in Environmental Chemistry from Osaka Prefecture University, Japan in 2007. She has over 20 years of working experience in research and education on Environmental Chemistry and is a leader of the research group “Air and Water Pollution - Public Health – Climate Change” (AIWAH) of VNUHCM. Her research interests focus on the sources, fate, and behavior of contaminants in the environment as well as their effects on human health. She has published 54 international, and 45 national peer-reviewed scientific papers and one book chapter. She has conducted, as PI or co-PI, over 20 national and international research projects with Japan, Korea, the UK, the US, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Taiwan. Under her supervision, there are 41 graduated masters who are working around the country.