Prof. Nobuyo Fukaya

Affiliation: Niigata Agro-Food University, Japan

Bio

Dr. Nobuyo Fukaya is a professor at Niigata Agro-Food University in Niigata, Japan. She previously served as a lecturer at Shibaura Institute of Technology in Tokyo. She earned her Ph.D. from Tsuda University, Japan.

Her research interests include first and second language acquisition, information structure, and discourse-pragmatic development in English. She has published studies on language acquisition using corpus-based approaches, including research on English wh-questions and dative alternation in both L1 English-speaking children and Japanese EFL learners. She is also exploring linguistic approaches to food perception and taste evaluation, examining how people describe and communicate their experiences of food.

Prof. Claudio Bendazzoli

Affiliation: University of Verona, Italy

Bio

Claudio Bendazzoli is Associate Professor of English Language, Translation and Linguistics in the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures at the University of Verona. Between 2012 and 2024 he worked as Assistant Professor at the University of Turin and prior to that (2004-2011) he worked in the Department of Interpreting and Translation at the University of Bologna at Forlì. From that department he obtained an MA in Conference Interpreting (Italian, English, Spanish) and a PhD in Languages, Cultures and Intercultural Communication with a project on simultaneous interpreting corpora. His main research interests concern interpreter-mediated communication in different settings and with different modes, Corpus Linguistics, English lingua franca and English medium instruction. He is also affiliated with the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in Spain and Dalian University of Foreign Languages in China. He is a practicing conference interpreter (A: Italian; B; English, Spanish) with extensive experience in the hairdressing industry.

Dr. Regan Lipes

Affiliation: MacEwan University, Canada

Bio

Dr. Regan Lipes is an Assistant Professor in the Department of English, at MacEwan University in Edmonton, Canada. She specializes in Comparative Literature with a focus on the diverse Jewish world. Dr. Lipes holds a BA inf Russian Language and Literature, an MA in Slavic Languages and Literatures, and a PhD in Comparative Literature. She was the 2019 Faculty Fellowship at the Auschwitz Jewish Centre in Oswiecim, Poland in partnership with the Museum of Jewish Heritage: A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in New York. Dr. Lipes was the 2024 recipient of the Sessional Excellence Teaching Award at MacEwan University. She is delighted to return to Tokyo, where she spent much of her childhood. Her grandfather was the founder and the original editor and chief of the Tokyo Weekender, an English-language expatriate newspaper celebrated throughout Japan. Dr. Lipes has followed this path as a side hobby and is a Local Journalism Initiative Reporter with the Alberta Jewish News.

Dr. Hungche Chen

Affiliation: Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, Taiwan

Bio

Hungche Chen is an assistant professor in the Center for General Education at Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, Taiwan, where he also serves as the Director of the Honors Program. He received his Doctor of Education in Bilingual Education from Texas A&M University and previously taught in Japan and the United States. He was selected to participate in the Fulbright ESP Professional Development Program at the University of Maryland.

His research focuses on AI-enhanced language education and educational technology. He has published in international journals and actively serves as a reviewer and editor for academic conferences and journals.

Dr. Siu-Lun Lee

Affiliation: The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

Bio

Siu-lun Lee is Principal Lecturer at the Yale-China Chinese Language Academy, the Centre for China Studies at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. As an experienced educator and administrator of Chinese language programmes at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, he has played a key role in developing and managing language curricula. Siu-lun Lee is a trained linguist with extensive involvement in linguistic and pedagogical research. His academic interests include applied linguistics, Cantonese studies, Chinese linguistics, multilingualism, sociolinguistics, and language teaching pedagogy. He has co-authored several scholarly articles, including A socio-historical approach to multilingualism in Hong Kong (2020), Linguistic landscapes and language contact (2020), Societal multilingualism in Hong Kong (2020), and Researching Hong Kong’s multilingual landscape (2025).

His research on language teaching pedagogy has been published in indexed journals. His contributions include studies such as Revisiting role-playing activities in foreign language teaching and learning (2015), E-Learning readiness in language learning (2016), Modular approaches in e-learning design (2018), Aligning peer tutoring systems in language education (2024), and Positioning pop songs in the Chinese language education curriculum (2026). His contributions to Cantonese education include the publication of Modern Cantonese (Volumes 1–3, Routledge, 2023) and The Learning and Teaching of Cantonese as a Second Language (Routledge, 2023).

Assoc. Prof. Hongguo Xue

Affiliation: Northwestern Polytechnical University, China

Bio

Hongguo Xue is an Associate Professor of English in the School of Foreign Studies at Northwestern Polytechnical University, China. Her main research interests concern applied linguistics and translation. She has published more than 20 papers, authored three textbooks, served as principal investigator for three provincial-level research projects, received five Excellent Teaching Achievement Awards, and obtained the Most Satisfactory Teacher award twice.

Asst. Prof. Hambalee Jehma

Affiliation: Prince of Songkla University, Thailand

Bio

Dr. Hambalee Jehma is a distinguished academic and administrator at Prince of Songkla University International College, Hatyai Campus, Thailand, where she currently serves as Assistant Professor and Head of General Education (University International Program). He holds a Ph.D. in Policy and Leadership in Higher Education from Chulalongkorn University, Thailand. He is also a UKPSF (Advance HE) Senior Fellow. Dr. Jehma's research interests encompass educational leadership in ELT, policy and management in higher education, media and technology in teaching and learning, and autonomous learning, with particular expertise in Second Life, virtual reality, mobile-assisted language learning, and AI integration in education. His administrative leadership is extensive, having served as Assistant Dean for Academic Service and Special Affairs, Assistant Dean for Research Innovation and Academic Service, and Assistant Director for Student Affairs, where he has managed international collaborations with universities across the UK, Germany, South Korea, Taiwan, China, Malaysia, Brunei, Bahrain, and Indonesia.

A prolific scholar, Dr. Jehma has published extensively in leading international journals, with recent work appearing in the International Journal of Interdisciplinary Educational Studies, REFLECTIONS, and the LEARN Journal. He has been honored with multiple awards, including the PSU Model Lecturer Award, the 100-Year Anniversary Chulalongkorn University Scholar Award, and the Distinguished Scholar Award from SEAMEO RELC, Singapore. His innovative contributions to hybrid learning, virtual feedback, and English language pedagogy continue to shape contemporary educational practices.

Invited Speakers