2025 Invited Speakers

Sopokhem Lim Waseda University, Japan

Biography: Dr. Sopokhem Lim is an Associate Professor and Senior Researcher at Waseda University Environmental Research Institute (WERI). After earning his M. Eng. in 2015 and Dr. Eng. in 2018 at Waseda University under a fully funded MEXT scholarship, Dr. Lim served as an Assistant Professor at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering for five years. His research interest has extended to innovative, sustainable cement and concrete technologies including alternative cement, low-carbon concrete, carbon capture and utilization technologies, recycled concrete, etc. His expertise centers on life cycle and reliability assessments of reinforced and prestressed concrete structures, addressing essential needs in infrastructure maintenance. As a senior researcher, Dr. Lim has led and co-led research projects funded by renowned organizations such as the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) and New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). He has authored and co-authored over 30 journal/conference papers. Dr. Lim serves as a reviewer of several SCI journals and an active member of international engineering associations such as IALCCE and IABMAS, where he was awarded the 2020 IABMAS Young Prize.

Kenta Fukagawa Meijo University, Japan

Biography: Dr. Kenta Fukagawa is an Associate Professor in the Department of Department of Environmental Technology, Faculty of Science and Technology at Meijo University. He earned his Doctorate in Engineering from Hiroshima University in 2008. Before joining Meijo University in 2022, he held various academic positions as an Assistant Professor, Lecturer, and Associate Professor at Kyushu Sangyo University and Hiroshima International University.
From 2007 to 2009, Dr. Fukagawa served as Secretary of the Pacific Association of Quantity Surveyors (PAQS) and his work has been awarded in 2009. He also held a board position in the Chugoku-Shikoku branch of the Building Surveyor’s Institute of Japan. Additionally, from 2017 to 2018, he was a visiting research fellow at Chulalongkorn University in Thailand, where he continues to collaborate as a project member.
Dr. Fukagawa's current research focuses on factors affecting human thermal comfort, based on studies in architectural environmental engineering, environmental psychology, and building science engineering.

Ji Li Southwest Jiaotong University, China

Biography: Trained as an architect, Dr. Ji Li received a Ph.D. in Urbanism and Urban Architecture (Netherlands, 2021), a Master’s in Architectural Design and Theory (China, 2017) and a Bachelor of Architecture (China, 2014), and now he is an associate professor, “scientific innovative youth” in the School of Architecture at Southwest Jiaotong University. Prior to joining the School of Architecture at SWJTU, Dr. Li was a part-time researcher on secondment at UNESCO World Heritage Centre while conducting his doctoral research on World Heritage and sustainable urban development at the Eindhoven University of Technology, with joint supervision of the Delft University of Technology and the University of Edinburgh. His topics of interest have coalesced around cultural heritage, digital participation, historic urban landscape and smart urban design. Dr. Li has published over 20 journal articles with a wide range of interests in Cities, Habitat International, Land, Frontiers of Architectural Research, etc. He has been a principal investigator/participant in scientific projects funded by various national, regional and municipal governments/academic institutions.

Yew Ming Kun Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia

Biography: Dr. Yew Ming Kun obtained his Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Malaya in 2015 and currently serves as an Associate Professor in Civil Engineering at Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Malaysia. He has mentored numerous postgraduate students, guiding them in various projects that have resulted in award-winning innovations, patents, and advancements in "Green & Sustainable Building Materials". As a Principal Investigator (P.I.) and Co-Principal Investigator, he has secured ten (10) intellectual property rights, both nationally and internationally. His accolades include multiple Gold Medals at the International Invention, Innovation & Technology Exhibition (ITEX) in 2011, 2019, 2020, and 2022, as well as a Gold Medal at the iENA 2012 in Germany. In recognition of his outstanding contributions, he received the Best Green Technology Award from the Japan Intellectual Property Association (JIPA) in 2022. Dr. Yew has published over 100 technical papers and books, primarily focusing on sustainable construction materials and fire protective coatings, emphasizing sustainability. He holds a prominent role as Lead Guest Associate Editor and Editorial Board Member for more than ten (10) scientific journals and has served as an invited reviewer for over 20 SCI journals. His exceptional work has been recognized with the 2023 Outstanding Editor Award and the Most Innovative Excellence Award in both 2020 and 2023.

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Previous Invited Speakers

Prof. Ippei Maruyama The University of Tokyo, Japan & Nagoya University, Japan

Biography: Dr. Ippei Maruyama is a Professor of Graduate School of Engineering at The University of Tokyo (cross-appointment) and a Professor of Graduate School of Environmental Studies at Nagoya University. He earned his B.Eng. in 1998, M.Eng. in 2000 and Dr.Eng. in 2003 from The University of Tokyo. Before he joined Nagoya University, he was visiting researcher at Delft University of Technology and assistant professor at Hiroshima University. He became a professor in 2016 in Nagoya University, then joined the University of Tokyo as a Professor.
He is a past chair of international committee on irradiated concrete, a Bureau member of RILEM, the editor in chief of Journal of Advanced Concrete Technology, and an associate editor of Materials and Structures. He is leading several national projects relating to aging management of concrete structures in nuclear power plants, Fukushima daiichi decommissioning process, and a long-term use of concrete structures.
His current research topics include architectural engineering, building material engineering, design of concrete structures, aging management of concrete structures, preservation of historical buildings and civil structures, radiation physics and chemistry for concrete, cement chemistry, applied geochemistry (mainly calcite and ferrite concretion phenomena).

Prof. Ippei Maruyama The University of Tokyo, Japan & Nagoya University, Japan

Biography: Dr. Ippei Maruyama is a Professor of Graduate School of Engineering at The University of Tokyo (cross-appointment) and a Professor of Graduate School of Environmental Studies at Nagoya University. He earned his B.Eng. in 1998, M.Eng. in 2000 and Dr.Eng. in 2003 from The University of Tokyo. Before he joined Nagoya University, he was visiting researcher at Delft University of Technology and assistant professor at Hiroshima University. He became a professor in 2016 in Nagoya University, then joined the University of Tokyo as a Professor.
He is a past chair of international committee on irradiated concrete, a Bureau member of RILEM, the editor in chief of Journal of Advanced Concrete Technology, and an associate editor of Materials and Structures. He is leading several national projects relating to aging management of concrete structures in nuclear power plants, Fukushima daiichi decommissioning process, and a long-term use of concrete structures.
His current research topics include architectural engineering, building material engineering, design of concrete structures, aging management of concrete structures, preservation of historical buildings and civil structures, radiation physics and chemistry for concrete, cement chemistry, applied geochemistry (mainly calcite and ferrite concretion phenomena).

Assoc. Prof. Kyoung Sun Moon Yale University, USA

Biography: Kyoung Sun Moon is Associate Professor at Yale University School of Architecture. He received a B.S. from Seoul National University and an M.Arch. and an M.S.C.E. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a Ph.D. from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Prior to joining the Yale faculty, Dr. Moon taught at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and worked at Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill in Chicago and the Republic of Korea Navy. Educated as both an architect and engineer, Dr. Moon’s primary research area is the integration between the art and science/technology of architecture, with a focus on tall and other structurally challenging buildings. His articles on this area have appeared in many scholarly journals including The Structural Design of Tall and Special Buildings, Engineering Structures, Journal of Architectural Engineering, Architectural Science Review, Journal of Urban Technology, and International Journal of Sustainable Building Technology and Urban Development to name a few. He is also the author of the book “Cantilever Architecture.” Dr. Moon is a licensed architect in the U.S., and a member of the American Institute of Architects, American Society of Civil Engineers Committee on Tall Buildings, and Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat Expert Peer Review Committee. He is the editor in chief of the International Journal of High-Rise Buildings and an editorial board member of other research journals.

Prof. Fuyuan Gong Zhejiang University, China

Biography: Prof. Fuyuan Gong graduated from Tsinghua University (Bachelor) and Hokkaido University (Master & Doctor), worked in The University of Tokyo (Post-Doctor) and Yokohama National University (Assistant Professor), and now “100Talents Professor” in Zhejiang University. His research interests include concrete durability; recycled concrete; mechanics for porous material; computational modeling; lifetime assessment, etc. Dr. Gong has published 60 SCI journal papers (38 are first / corresponding author, Google Citations = 1097, h-index = 19). He has been awarded the Japan Concrete Institute Award in 2014, JSPS Fellowship in 2014 and “Achievement Award for Young Engineers” by fib in 2017. He also serves as the Associate Editor of 3 international journals: Journal of Advanced Concrete Technology (SCI), International Journal of Structural Engineering (ESCI) and Journal of Intelligent Construction. Dr. Gong has obtained several national and provincial funds, approximately 8,000,000 RMB. His research outcomes have been applied to several engineering projects such as Wu Dong De dam, Hang Shao Yong highway etc.

Assoc. Director Sunghwan Kim Iowa State University, USA

Biography: Dr. Sunghwan Kim, P.E., serves as the Associate Director of the Program for Sustainable Pavement Engineering and Research (PROSPER) and holds the position of Senior Research Scientist at the Institute for Transportation at Iowa State University (ISU). Additionally, he is an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering (CCEE) Department at ISU. Dr. Kim earned his Bachelor of Science degree from Korea University in 1999, followed by a Master of Science degree (2004) and a doctorate (2006) in civil engineering, both from Iowa State University. He is a licensed Professional Engineer (PE) in the State of Michigan. Prior to joining ISU, Dr. Kim gained nearly four years of experience as a civil engineer at Hyundai Development Company (HDC) in South Korea.
Dr. Kim's career is marked by significant contributions to transportation and geo-infrastructure engineering. At ISU, he played a pivotal role as a co-principal investigator in over 40 competitively funded research projects, securing more than $14.5 million in project funds. Additionally, he served as a technical specialist in 16 research projects, concentrating on both paved and unpaved road systems and their construction materials. His prolific academic output includes authoring and co-authoring over 250 peer-reviewed technical publications, encompassing more than 95 journal articles and over 100 conference papers, and presenting more than 140 technical presentations in the realm of pavement/geosystem and transportation infrastructure engineering. Dr. Kim’s expertise and dedication to his field have been recognized with several awards, including the 2020 FAA PEGASAS Jimenez Faculty/Researcher Award and the 2021 ISU Professional and Scientific Excellence Award, among others, underscoring his substantial impact on pavement engineering and transportation infrastructure system research.

Assoc. Prof. Guang Ye Delft University of Technology, Netherlands

Biography: Dr. Ye is an associate professor in the Section of Materials and Environment of TUDelft. He is the Chair of the research group of Concrete Modelling and Materials Behavior. He received his PhD with honor from TUDelft in 2003. After his PhD, he spent one year as postdoc in Ghent University, Belgium. In 2005 he received VENI grant from NWO and worked as senior researcher in TUDelft, afterwards as assistant, associate professor till now. Dr. Ye is also a guest professor in the Magnel Laboratory for Concrete Research, Faculty of Structural Engineering, Ghent University, Belgium since 2006, and a gust professor of several Chinese universities and institutes, like Chinese Building Academy, Southeast University, South China University of Technology. Dr. Ye received his PhD in Concrete Structures and Materials in 2003. His research interests focus on the properties of cementitious materials, i.e., early age hydration and microstructural development, permeability and durability. As author/co-author, he has published 300 journal/conference papers. He is also the editor/co-editor of 8 conference proceedings and Chapter contribution of 6 books. Dr. Ye is the member of several RILEM Technical Committees, like TC-ICC, TC-ATC, TC-SHC, and TC-SAP, TC-DTA and fib committee of 8.10 and 8.12.

Assoc. Prof. Alcestis Rodi University of Patras, Greece

Biography: Dr Alcestis Rodi is a tenured associate professor at the Department of Architecture, University of Patras. She studied architecture at the School of Architecture, National Technical University, Athens (Dipl. Arch., 1994), before completing her Master’s of Architecture in Urban Design at the Harvard Graduate School of Design (1997) as a National Greek Foundation scholar and a Harvard /Doxiadis fellow. In 2008 she received her PhD in Engineering from Delft University of Technology as a Michelis grantee. In her dissertation she developed a new design tool for the regeneration of city centres towards a creative city by transforming the city block. In 2018-2019 she was a visiting fellow at the School of Architecture and Planning, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as an Onassis Foundation and Latsis Foundation grantee. She had practiced architecture and urban design in USA before she established her practice in Athens in 1999, focusing on the design and construction of housing projects at various scales and contexts. She was advisor on urban issues to the Vice President of the Greek Government (2010-12). Her current research and recent academic publications focus on urban morphology and the making of more sustainable, resilient, socially cohesive, healthy and happy cities. Within this framework she introduced in 2015 the concept of ‘Bricolage Urbanism’. She has done extensive research on Modern Greek architecture and planning that resulted in the publication of the book Modern Architectures in History: Greece (Reaktion Books, 2013) with Alexander Tzonis. She was the editor and a contributor to several collective volumes. Her design work and academic articles have been published in international periodicals and have received international awards.

Assoc. Prof. Manny Anthony Martin Taguba National University - Manila, Philippines

Biography: Engr. Manny Anthony M. Taguba is the current Program Chair of Environmental and Sanitary Engineering Department, the current College Research Coordinator of the College of Engineering and an assistant professor for the Civil Engineering Department of the College of Engineering of National University (NU) Manila.
He acquired his bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering at Technological Institute of the Philippines-Quezon City in 2006 where he received the President Elpidio Quirino Scholarship Grant. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in Environmental and Sanitary Engineering at National University-Manila in 2010. In 2011, he placed 3rd at the Sanitary Engineer’s Licensure Exam. He is also a recipient of the DOST-ERDT scholarship in University of the Philippines where he finished and earned his Master of Science in Environmental Engineering in 2016. Currently, he has completed academic units in M.S. in Civil Engineering Major in Water Resources also at UP-Diliman.
As a Civil Engineer, Engr. Taguba worked in Maynilad Water Services, Inc. (MWSI) as Project Operations Engineer from 2007 to 2010 and as Supervisor of Construction Management Group of Non-Revenue Water (NRW) Division of MWSI.
As academician, Engr. Taguba has been teaching various Civil Engineering courses such as Fluid Mechanics & Hydraulics, Mechanics of Deformable Bodies, and Transportation Engineering; numerous undergraduate Sanitary Engineering courses such as Wastewater Engineering, Environmental Science and Engineering, Industrial Hygiene, and Solid Waste management; and few courses in graduate programs of Sanitary Engineering. Aside from teaching, he performs various works in research and was involved in accreditation application of the Civil and Sanitary Engineering Department of NU-Manila. In March 2017, he received Outstanding Faculty Award and May of same year, he received an Academic Excellence in the fields of Teaching, Research, and Service of the College of Engineering.
He is a professional member of the Institute for Engineering Research and Publication (IFERP). He has attended and presented numerous research papers in different local and international conferences and conventions. He has collaborated with numerous Civil and Sanitary Engineering students in different research studies, some of which were presented in Maryland, USA (2018 and 2019). In March 2019, he and his engineering students joined the 12th Annual Research Award (ARAW) and their research hailed as semi-finalist. Furthermore, on November 16, 2019, Engr. Taguba was awarded as Best Presenter during the International Conference on Engineering and Applied Science in Yogyakarta, Indonesia by the Faculty of Engineering and Science of Universitas Muhamadiyah Purwokerto (UMP).
Engr. Taguba is an active member of Philippine Society of Sanitary Engineers, Inc. since 2011 and currently serving as the National Secretary. His work and contributions have been pivotal in various Annual and Mid-Year National Convention, outreach program, trainings, and webinar activities of the said organization.