‍ABOUT

Ms. Dechen Tsering was appointed as the regional director of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Asia and the Pacific in March 2017. As the regional arm of UNEP, headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, the Asia-Pacific office works with governments, local authorities and the private sector to develop and put into place cleaner and safer policies and strategies that encourage the efficient use of natural resources and reduce risks for humans and the environment.

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Ms. Tsering has held management and leadership positions with the United Nations and has over 30 years of experience in national government and intergovernmental organisations. She has been actively involved in intergovernmental negotiations as a key negotiator for least-developed countries and contributed to the establishment of the Least Developed Countries Fund and the Least Developed Countries Expert Group. She also has experience in the management of complex development projects. She comes to UNEP from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) secretariat, where she served as director of the Finance, Technology and Capacity-building Programme. In that position, she supported international co-operation on mobilisation of finance, technology development and transfer, and capacity building to enable countries to take enhanced action on climate change. Prior to that position, she was the deputy regional director of UNEP in Asia and the Pacific.

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Ms. Tsering holds a PhD in forest economics and policy from the Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich. She also has a master’s degree from Georgetown University and undergraduate degrees from the University of California, Berkeley.

‍ABOUT

Dr Bruno Marques is a registered landscape architect and educator. He completed his Landscape Architecture studies at the University of Lisbon (Portugal) and Berlin Technical University (Germany), followed by his PhD studies at the University of Otago (New Zealand).

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Bruno has practised in Germany, Estonia, the United Kingdom and New Zealand, having an extensive portfolio of built projects. During the past nine years at Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, he has developed a comprehensive research agenda to embrace the formulation of frameworks on landscape rehabilitation, cultural landscapes, place-making and Indigenous community health and wellbeing. He is currently the Associate Dean for the Faculty of Architecture and Design Innovation and the President of the International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA).

‍ABOUT

Experienced urban and regional planner. Skilled in sustainable development, strategic planning, urban planning, feasibility studies, mixed-use and policy design (focus urban regeneration). Strong cities related business development professional, graduated from University of Rome "La Sapienza", doctorate in urban policy design from University of Roma 3 and post doc activities from both Roma 3 and university of Roma 2 (Tor Vergata). Currently managing director of Urbasofia (www.urbasofia.eu). EC UIA (urban innovative actions) expert, EC URBACT expert. Former planum.net secretary general, ISOCARP President.

‍ABOUT

Prof. Dr. José Vieira is a civil engineer with extensiveexperience in engineering education, research and management. He is FullProfessor at University of Minho, Portugal, where he served as Pro Rector(1990-1998) and Vice Rector (1998-2002). He has coordinated large number ofgraduation and post-graduation study programmes in civil engineering, anddevelops his research activities in the fields of water resources planning,hydrodynamics in estuaries and coastal zones, and drinking water and publichealth.

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Prof. Dr. José Vieira was President of the EuropeanFederation of National Engineering Associations (FEANI) from 2014 to 2020.Under his leadership, strategic initiatives were launched to enhance thevisibility of the value of engineers to society, stressing the relevance ofpromoting the UN Sustainable Development Goals in future engineering educationand practice.

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Prof. Dr. José Vieira was the National Vice President of thePortuguese Association of Engineers from 2010 to 2016, responsible foreffective international cooperation in mutual recognition of engineering

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He has been involved in WFEO activities since 2015 as amember of the Executive Council and chair of the Strategic Planning Committee.

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He was elected President-Elect of WFEO at the GeneralAssembly in Melbourne in November 2019 and became President of WFEO at theGeneral Assembly in San José, Costa Rica in March 2022.

ABOUT

José Luis Cortés is the UIA President for the 2021-2023 term. He is a graduate of the Monterrey Institute of Technology, Mexico with post-graduate degrees in urban planning from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Denmark and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA. Mr. Cortés formerly served as President of the Federation of Colleges of Architects of the Mexican Republic (FCARM) from 2017 to 2018 as well as UIA Region III Vice-President and Council Member.

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He taught urban planning at the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana Campus Xochimilc and headed the Department of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Iberoamerica in Mexico City, Mexico. A visiting professor in India, Japan and Sweden, he has carried out architectural and urban planning projects for many historic city centres and has authored numerous publications on housing and urban planning. He has received official honours from the governments of Spain and Japan.

‍ABOUT

Mr. Yisong Guan is the Chief Representative of theEllen MacArthur Foundation’s Beijing Office. He has rich experience inproviding consultation to governments and enterprises for green transition. Inhis over ten years career on climate change, he founded Easy Carbon, aconsultancy firm, which supported its clients to develop low carbon transitionstrategy and achieve carbon financing under Clean Development Mechanism ofUNFCCC.

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The company secured over 5billion RMB carbon emission reduction financing through the internationalcarbon market and successfully registered the most CDM projects in China. Hewas the Chief Operation Officer of the UNEP – International EcosystemManagement Partnership (UNEP-IEMP), responsible for organisation management andproject execution to protect biodiversity with promoting internationalcooperation on ecosystem management.

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Now, he is leading the China Programme ofthe Foundation to accelerate the circular economy transition of China throughhigh level cooperation, industry transition dialogue and capacity building tounlock the country’s potentials and achieve the social and environmentalbenefits from the circular economy.

ABOUT

Damian Tang currently holds the positions of Chief Sustainability Officer at Uniseal Global and Managing Director at Uniseal Creative Solutions. He is an accomplished graduate of the University of Melbourne, holding degrees in Bachelor of Planning and Design, Bachelor of Architecture, and Master of Landscape Architecture.

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With a career spanning over 20 years in the public service, Damian has held senior management roles and played key roles in strategic planning and design committees. His expertise lies in interdisciplinary planning, design, and the implementation of biophilic strategies across environmental sectors. He currently sits in the URA Design Advisory Panel for strategic projects. His commitment to public service has been acknowledged with awards such as the 2020 National Day Public Administration Silver Medal conferred by Prime Minister Office.

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Damian's executive education from the University of Cambridge Judge Business School has equipped him with specialization in circular business operations, carbon management, and sustainable strategies for the Uniseal Group.

ABOUT

Julian is a Partner at McKinsey & Company, and also holds the position of Associate Professor for Circular Economy at Roskilde University, Denmark. He has achieved recognition as one of the top 2% most cited scientists worldwide, according to Stanford University's database. Julian has extensive experience working with both public and private sector clients, providing expertise in sustainability. His areas of focus range from devising ESG strategies, to fostering the growth of green businesses, and shaping public policies for sustainability.

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Recent McKinsey Experience:

• Conducted a circularity scan for a large chemicals company, evaluating operations, supply chain, and waste management to identify sustainable improvement opportunities

• Crafted an ESG strategy for a steelmaker, aligning their operations with environmental, social, and governance best practices, while driving sustainable growth

• Conducted a comprehensive scope 3 emissions assessment for a prominent semi-conductor player, analyzing indirect emissions throughout their value chain to support their emission reduction goals

• Played a key role in launching a pioneering green business model for a consumer electronics player, integrating sustainability into their products, processes, and market positioning

• Assisted a European government in establishing a dedicated public investment fund to support circular economy initiatives, driving sustainable economic development and fostering innovation

• Devised a comprehensive strategy to establish an eco-industrial park in a Southeast Asian country, focusing on sustainable infrastructure, waste management, and attracting environmentally conscious industries

• Formulated a strategic roadmap for green growth in a Central Asian country, outlining sustainable development plans, renewable energy integration, and environmental conservation measures

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Additional Experience & Education:

• Worked as an assistant professor for sustainable business and innovationat Utrecht University, the Netherlands

• Served as City Councilor in Werl, Germany, and County Councilor, Soest,Germany

• Ph. D. (University of Oxford), M. P. A. (Distinction) & M. P. P.(Dean’s List) (London School of Economics/National University of Singapore), B.Sc. (cum laude) in economics (Universiteit Twente)

ABOUT

Sasa was Head of Marketing Services, Europe, Middle East and Africa at Sandoz, and Head of Marketing Services at Lek Pharmaceuticals. Sasa Bavec joined Knauf Group in 2009. Sasa served as General Manager of Original Equipment Manufacturer Europe and Commonwealth of Independent States and Managing Director of Original Equipment Manufacturer Business and Group Marketing Director for Knauf Group.

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Education:

Sasa Bavec has a Master of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from University of Ljubljana in 1999 and a Doctor of Philosophy in Biotechnology from University of Ljubljana in 2004.

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Specialties:

General manager focusing on business growth, but successful also in turn around situations, Blue Ocean Strategy implementation - leading companies from theory to practice, based on my marketing, innovation management and intellectual property (IP) experiences.

ABOUT

Co-founder of World Green Infrastructure Network (WGIN) in 2008; since 2008 President of this organization. More than 200 related scientific publications, with main focus on green infrastructure.

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Education:

Technical University of Berlin, Germany. Diploma Degree 1981, PhD: 1987: about “Eco effects of vegetated facades.”

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Professional Activities:

• 1981 – 1990: Scientist; Institute ofEcology, Technical University, Berlin, Germany.

• 1990 - 1994: Executive Director of the Research Centre of Landscape Ecology, Bremen, Germany

• 1994- March 2021: Professor ofLandscape ecology at the University of Applied Sciences, Neubrandenburg.

• Since April 2021: Senior ProfessorUniv. of Applied Sciences,

• April to August 2021 also visitingProfessor Warsaw University of Life Sciences,

• Part time lecturer Jiao TongUniversity, Shanghai.

• Landscape architect

• Member of related Associations, such as FLL, BUGG, BDLA.

ABOUT

Barry Lynham is Managing Director of Knauf Energy Solutions, where he is focused on the low carbon transformation of the building stock.

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Previously,Barry was Group Director for Strategy and Communication at Knauf Insulation, where he led Knauf Insulation’s public affairs, regulatory affairs, sustainability, corporate communications and building science teams as well as being Secretary of the Board of Knauf Insulation.

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Barry has in the past also been involved with a number of organisations including as President of Fire Safe Europe and as a Board Member of EURIMA (European Insulation Manufacturers Association), EUASE (the European Alliance to Save Energy) and EuroACE (the European Alliance of Companies for Energy Efficiency in Buildings). Barry is currently on the Board of SMARTEN the European business association integrating the consumer-driven solutions of the clean energy transition.

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Before joining Knauf Insulation, Barry spent just under a decade working as a public affairs consultant in Brussels. Previous to this, Barry worked at the European Commission in Brussels where he was responsible for drafting legislation on CO₂ from cars. Barry holds a degree in English andFrench law and is married with two children.

ABOUT

His ExcellencyAli Al Jassim, Chairman of Emirates Green Building Council (EmiratesGBC), andVice Chair for Green Buildings in the Mena & North Africa region.  H. E. is a holder of a PhD in BusinessManagement (GPA=3.80), Master of Business Administrationwith Honors (GPA=3.95), and Bachelors of Science inCivil Engineering.

H.E.Ali has 29 years of experience in leading roles in both public and privatesectors delivering programs and projects and has held top positions in bothsectors.  H.E. led and worked with teamson iconic projects in the Emirate of Dubai and on the federal level in theUAE.  Examples of these projects areDubai metro, Noll card, salik, 43 major roads infrastructure projects during2006, enhancing & elevating drivers training and vehicle licensing servicesduring 2008, unifying drivers licenses and vehicles ownership all over the UAEin 2008/2009, created and established 2 drivers training institutes (schools)in 2012 and 2017, led a government entity and managed a government ownedcompany providing energy services, worked on the 3 largest solar projects inthe region and the World, Hatta villas solar rooftop, a 21 MWh on a single roof,and 5000 villas solar roofs completed in 1 year. H. E. under the visionaryleadership led a team that made Dubai a leading city in the region in energyservices and retrofit during 2018/2020.

Presently,H.E. Ali Al Jassim is the Chairman of the Emirates Green Building Council in the UAE, and a Vice Chair for green building councils for the Mena and NorthAfrica region.  H.E. is promoting for sustainability in the region and thriving to make Dubai and the UAE a Global sustainable hub.

ABOUT

Sasa Bozic is a Strategic Marketing and Social Sustainability Consultant & Coach, Business Developer for UAE and India, International Keynote Speaker and Author. For 28 years, she has been playing numerous roles in corporations across Europe, Middle East and India, as a strategic advisor, who connects the dots between the successful business, branding & storytelling strategies and Employee Wellbeing Programs. Presenting EWP activities and measures to executives and locally adapting them to engage employees through holistic measures, she believes the most added value towards achieving Corporate goals can be provided with authentic leaders and empowered, happy and healthy employees.

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Due to her contribution in the area of raising preventive health awareness and spreading engagement among employees, she was also invited as a speaker to Indian FICCI Heal Conference 2016 and later on as a speaker and an award winner to the World Health and Wellness Congress & Awards 2017, 2018, 2019, World Coaching Congress 2020 and Women Economic Forum in Hague, Los Angeles, London, Cairo and Poland.

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As a president of WICCI Slovenia, devoted member of All Ladies League and its mission towards Women Empowerment in 2020 Sasa volunteered nine months to coordinate an amazing team of 16 Ladies organizing Women Economic Forum 2020 in Slovenia with 300 participants coming from 25 countries.
During the challenging COVID times of 2020, Sasa founded www.Sophia.Academy uniting the ancient wisdom of wellbeing, bringing it back to corporate world by presenting a unique method that taps into the full potential of individuals and teams, unlocking company’s hidden gems.

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As an organic development of Sophia Academy activities a Living with a Green Heart Social sustainability initiative has been co-created in 2021 by Sasa’s team and two other Slovenian companies, going global with official launch at EXPO 2020 in Dubai, moving with the speed of light around the globe from that moment on (www.green-heart.si) and working on new social sustainability project “365 Days of Ancient Wisdom for the Wellbeing of Modern Men” that can be followed on 1 World 1 Family – The 365 days of ancient wisdom for the wellbeing of modern man and will be presented at COP 28 in Dubai.

ABOUT

A pioneering green building and sustainability advocate for over two decades, Esther has been instrumental in establishing CDL’s leadership in sustainability. It is ranked top real estate company on theGlobal 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World since 2020. It became the first real estate conglomerate in SoutheastAsia to sign the World Green Building Council’s Net Zero Carbon Buildings inFebruary 2021. Named by Reuters as one of 25trailblazing women leaders in climate 2023, Esther’s pioneering ESG initiatives include publishing the first sustainability report in Singapore in 2008and issuing the first green bond by a Singaporean company in 2017.  

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The chairperson of theSustainability Report Advisory Committee in Singapore, she also sits on board the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Supervisory Board, GRESB FoundationBoard, and UN PRI Real Estate Advisory Committee. She chairs the World GreenBuilding Council Corporate Advisory Board; the Asia Pacific Real EstateAssociation’s ESG Committee; and set up and co-chaired the inaugural Urban LandInstitute Singapore’s Sustainability Product Council from April 2020 to July2023.  

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A forerunnerin embracing the UN SDGs, Esther was conferred 2018 SDG Pioneer for GreenInfrastructure and A Low Carbon Economy by the UN Global Compact.  A G20 EmpowerAdvocate in 2022, Esther recognizes that youth engagement andfemale empowerment is crucial for sustainable development.  She founded the Women4Green network in 2017and the Youth4Climate initiative in 2018.  

ABOUT

Tan Szue Hann, MBA, MArch, is an award-winning architect, sustainability professional and business strategist in sustainable development. Hann is Head of Sustainability and Deputy General Manager, Sustainable Urban Renewal, at Keppel (Real Estate), Singapore. He is also the Chairman ofSustainability, Singapore Institute of Architects, the professional body forArchitects in Singapore. He has also been Director of Sustainability Development and Engineering at Marina Bay Sands, Managing Director of Miniwiz, and Head ofSustainability at Surbana Jurong. Hann graduated with an M Arch and BA Arch(First Class Honours) from NUS, with a visiting fellowship to UCLA in 2007, and an MBA with Distinction from Northumbria University in 2022.

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Hann is also an appointed World Cities Summit Young Leader, and BCA Built Environment YoungLeader, and was Singapore’s 2015-16 BCA-SGBC Young Green Architect of the Year.He has spoken in numerous conferences including SWITCH, the UN Asia PacificUrban Forum, and COP25 in Madrid. In 2021, he co-founded IxSA (Innovation xSustainability Alliance), a global non-profit think tank with sustainability leaders, with the goal of creating and perpetuating a manifesto for good sustainability practices. His key skills are in stakeholder alignment, and translating sustainability goals into business value.

ABOUT

Ang Seng leads the engineering consultancy business for Beca in Singapore and Myanmar as Managing Director with 250 strong technical professionals in these offices. He is a key member of Beca Asia Leadership Team and the Executive Leadership Team of the Beca Group. He is actively involved in strategic planning with key business and market leaders in the group and leads the implementation of the company strategies.

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As a veteran Green Mark Accredited Professional and an active advocate of sustainability across the Built Environment industry value chains, Ang Seng serves in the board of Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC)since 2019, and currently holds the position of President of SGBC.

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He is also a member of the Industry Advisory Committee of the Sustainable Infrastructure Engineering(Building Services) for SIT University that provides feedback on curriculum development for the degree programmes. He also co-chairs the GreenBuilt-Environment Advisory Committee (GBAC).

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Ang Seng graduated with a Bachelor of Science (Honours) Degree and a MasterBusiness Administration (MBA) from Northumbria University at Newcastle, UK.

ABOUT

Mr Chung Dalson is currently the President of The Institution of Engineers, Singapore (IES) and the Senior Specialist with the National Environment Agency.

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Mr Chung was educated in Singapore and Germany. He was awarded the Singapore Government Scholarship in 1977 and obtained his bachelor’s degree in Structural Engineering from Essen University in Germany in 1982 and his Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the National University of Singapore in 1989. He later obtained his Master’s in Business Administration from the National University of Singapore under the Singapore Government’s scholarship for post-graduate study in 1996.

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Mr Chung is a Fellow of The Institution of Engineers, Singapore (IES) and a Chartered Engineer Singapore (Environment and Water). He is the sector Chair of the Chartered Engineer Singapore for the Environment and Water sector. He is also a member of the IES Chartered Engineering Board and the Engineering Accreditation Board. Mr Chung is a Board Director of the Singapore Environment Council and Member of its Singapore Green Labelling Steering Committee. He chairs the Technical Committee on Circularity of Materials, co-chairs the National Mirror Committee on ISO Circular Economy standards and is the Deputy Chairman of the Environment and Resources Standards Committee set up by the Enterprise Singapore.

ABOUT

Djoko is the President of SingaporeInstitute of Planners, 2022 – 2024. He has 30 years of experience in urban planning and urban design consultancy, and is currently the Director of DPUrban (DPU), Singapore based urban planning firm.

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In his 30 years career in planning consultancy, he advised both public and private sector clients across Asia,Middle East and Africa, completed and implemented a number of large-scale city and regional planning projects, and numerous planning and urban design projects at various scale and complexity.

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Djoko won numerous Planning Awards for his projects, he also lectured and provided capacity building programme for various planning institutions in the region.

ABOUT

Srilalitha Gopalakrishnan is a landscape architect with over15 years of professional experience and diverse projects across Singapore,Malaysia, China, Hong Kong, and India. She has worked with Tierra Design inSingapore for over 11 years on a wide range of projects with many of her projects winning several accolades, including the President*s Design Award forDesign of the Year for the Hotel Park Royal on Pickering. Her research interests focus on the performance of integrated landscape design in high-density urban environments for resilient and sustainable urban design solutions. She is currently working as Associate Director of Research andProject Coordinator for the Dense and Green Cities: Emerging Models ofIntegrated Urban Developments project at Future Cities Lab Global,Singapore-ETH Centre. She is the current President of the Singapore Institute of Landscape Architects (SILA) and has been part of the SILA Council under various capacities since 2008. She represents SILA at various national-level committees and strategic planning groups and chairs SILA's Leadership in DesignStrategic Pillar.

ABOUT

Dr. Pang Sze Dai graduated from the National University of Singapore with B.Eng. (First Class Honours) and M.Eng. degrees in 2001 and 2002 respectively under the Accelerated Master’s Program (AMP), and from the Northwestern University with Ph.D. degree in 2005. He researched on the behaviour of profiled steel-concrete composite structures subjected to blast loading for his M.Eng thesis and on the size effect arising from energetic and probabilistic fracture mechanics in the mechanical properties of quasi-brittle materials for his Ph.D dissertation.

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Dr. Pang joined the National University of Singapore in 2006 as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) and the Engineering Science Programme (ESP). He designed and taught modules for the newly set-up ESP and the fresh approach towards students’ learning was awarded the Faculty of Engineering Innovative Teaching Award. The students that he has mentored in CEE and ESP has won multiple awards at faculty and university levels which include the Faculty Innovation and Research Awards, University Outstanding Undergraduate Researcher Awards, University Student Achievement Awards. At international level, the teams that he has mentored for the annual international earthquake design competition in Taiwan and has won top awards every year. On top of the teaching of modules and mentoring of students, he has been active in administrative roles as the Acting Programme Manager for the M.Sc (Civil) and M.Sc (Geotech) programmes in 2008-2010, and is currently the Curriculum Coordinator for the Design-Centric Curriculum which is delivered by Engineering Design and Innovation Centre.

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Dr. Pang is currently working on research in the area of protective building and sustainable building technologies using principles from bio-mimicry and is also researching on the size effect in cementitious and metal matrix composites. He has attracted close to S$3 million in research funding as Principle Investigator and collaborator. He has served on the committees for a number of major conferences, reviewed for multiple journal articles and also served as external reviewer for national research projects. He has also provided his expertise to the industry for consultations on structural dynamics, steel structures and seismic engineering.