The lineup
Invited Speakers
Keynote Sessions
Datuk Seri Professor Emeritus Dr. Haji Awang bin Sariyan
UiTM Chair of the Institution of the Malay Rulers
Keynote Title: “Bahasa Melayu sebagai Bahasa Moden: Langkah Strategik dalam Pengisian Dasar Diplomasi Budaya”
YB Senator Datuk Seri Professor Emeritus Dr. Haji Awang bin Sariyan was born on 20 October 1953 in Hulu Kelang, Selangor, and is a highly respected figure in the field of language. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Literature from UKM, a Master of Arts in Linguistics from UM, and a Doctor of Philosophy in the Philosophy of Language Education from UM.
Throughout his academic career, he has served at various universities both locally and internationally, including UiTM, UIAM, UPM, UM, UPSI, Beijing Foreign Studies University, and Goethe University in Germany. He also previously led the Institute of the Malay World and Civilization (ATMA) at UKM. He is currently the holder of the Chair of the Institution of the Malay Rulers at UiTM.
In language administration, he has held several key positions, including Director-General of Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (2012–2016), Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (2020–2023), and is presently an appointed Senator by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (2023–2026), as well as Chairman of the Governing Committee of Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka. With this extensive experience, he continues to play a significant role in upholding and advancing the Malay language at both the national and international levels.
Professor Dr. Stefanie Shamila Pillai
Universiti Malaya
Professor Dr. Stefanie Shamila Pillai is from Universiti Malaya. She is a leading scholar in Varieties of English, especially Malaysian English, and an expert in language use within multilingual and educational contexts. Her work also extends to preserving indigenous and endangered languages, including the digital archiving of Melaka Portuguese. A Fellow of the Academy of Sciences Malaysia and a Mercator Fellow at the University of Hamburg, she contributes actively to national language policy and serves as a consultant to the Oxford English Dictionary.
Plenary Sessions
Dr. Sailal Arimi
Faculty of Cultural Sciences,
Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta
Dr. Sailal Arimi, M.Hum., is a lecturer in the Doctoral Program in Humanities (S-3), the Master’s Program in Linguistics (S-2), and the Undergraduate Program in Indonesian Language and Literature (S-1) at the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), Yogyakarta.
Dr. Sailal earned his Doctorate in Linguistics from the Humanities Program at UGM in 2016. His research interests and areas of expertise include sociolinguistics, cultural and media studies, cognitive linguistics, the teaching of Indonesian for Foreign Speakers (BIPA), and forensic linguistics.
He served as a research fellow at Osaka University, Japan (2003–2004), and at the University of California, Berkeley, USA (2009–2010). He was also appointed as a visiting lecturer twice at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, South Korea, in 2016–2017 and 2019–2020.
Dr. Sailal has frequently served as a judge for popular scientific writing and essay competitions, as a research evaluator for dissertations and research projects, and as an external examiner for doctoral programs at Universitas Negeri Surabaya (Unesa) and Universitas Hasanuddin (Unhas) Makassar. In addition, he has served as an editor and reviewer for several national and international academic journals.
Azreen Turaz Radzik Bin Aznan
Head of Strategy & Sustainability
Downstream Division, FGV Holdings Berhad
Azreen is currently the Head of Strategy & Sustainability at FGV Bhd’s Downstream Division, one of Malaysia’s largest palm oil based agribusiness company. He has been with FGV since 2010 being involved at Group Strategy and Sustainability units.
He graduated with an Economics degree from Seattle University, USA and earned his MBA from the International Islamic University Malaysia. He started his career as a corporate banker at a local bank focusing on corporate lending and restructuring.
Over the past 29 years, he has accumulated professional experience in various fields involving banking, IT and commodities and taken him across the ASEAN region.
Today he is a firm believer that in order to be effective in the globally connected work place, one has to be able to respect the local culture, remain grounded and embrace communications dynamics.
Forum
Forum Title:
Bahasa, Komunikasi dan AI
Prof. Dato. Is. Dr. Mohd Zainul Fithri
Deputy President of National Education Integration Council (or MIPN – Majlis Integrasi Pendidikan Negara)
Dr Alla Baksh bin Mohamed Ayub Khan
Vice President of Malaysian Association for Language Testing (MALT)