Researchers from 53 Bangladeshi universities and seven countries will explore sustainability across nine academic disciplines, with the conference also highlighting industry-academia cooperation and opportunities for joint research.
Port City International University (PCIU), a university in Chattogram in southwestern Bangladesh, will host its third international conference on October 8 and 9, bringing together researchers, academics and other participants from Bangladesh and seven other countries to discuss sustainable development through higher education and research.
Speaking at a press conference at the university auditorium on October 6, PCIU Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr Mohammad Tayeb Chowdhury outlined the conference programme, international participation and research themes.
The conference, titled “Sustainable Development Through Excellence in Higher Education: Contemporary Global Perspectives”, will focus on advancing sustainable development through higher education and research, facilitating knowledge and experience-sharing among researchers and academics from different countries, strengthening academic cooperation and creating new research networks, Chowdhury said.
A total of 301 abstracts were submitted for the conference, with 285 full research papers accepted after review, according to information presented at the press conference.
Researchers from 53 universities in Bangladesh have submitted papers. A further 11 papers have come from universities in the United States, United Kingdom, China, Malaysia, Turkey, Nigeria and India.
The conference will feature nine tracks covering computer science and engineering; English language, literature and ELT; electrical and electronics engineering; journalism and media studies; business administration; textile engineering; civil engineering; law; and fashion design and technology.
Several of the tracks will focus on sustainability and technological responses to environmental challenges.
The electrical and electronics engineering track will cover renewable energy, sustainable power systems, biomedical engineering, artificial intelligence, robotics and smart communication technology. The civil engineering track will examine structural, geotechnical and transportation engineering, as well as water resources and environmental engineering.
The textile engineering track will address textile science, AI-driven manufacturing, nanotechnology and green processing technology. The fashion design and technology track will focus on sustainable fashion, digital transformation and smart fashion, as well as the relationship between fashion, culture and sustainable development.
The business administration track will examine sustainable finance, corporate governance, human resource management, AI and business analytics, marketing and consumer behaviour.
The computer science and engineering track will cover AI, data science, cybersecurity, digital health, smart education and digital transformation. The journalism and media studies track will include research on digital media, AI and communication, journalism education, media and sustainable development, as well as journalism, democracy and ethical communication.
The English language, literature and ELT track will focus on language education, AI and pedagogy, postcolonial studies and sustainable literature. The law track will examine legal education, access to justice, sustainable development and social responsibility.
Keynote speakers include Dr Sudan Jha, professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Kathmandu University in Nepal; Dr Abdullah Rasheed, former State Minister for Education of the Maldives and currently an assistant professor at Zikura International College; Dr Ni Gunti Ayu Ketut Kurniasari, lecturer in communication science at the Faculty of Communication Science and Creative Design at Budi Luhur University in Indonesia; Dr Dao Cam Thuy, lecturer in marketing and branding at the School of Economics and Business at Vietnam National University; and Dr Jun Xu, professor at the School of Textile Science and Engineering at Tiangong University in China.
Assistant Professor Khalida Ali, PhD, of Minhaz University in Lahore, Pakistan, will also take part in the conference.
Dr Aditi Sharma, associate professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Symbiosis International University in India, was scheduled to speak but will be unable to attend because of visa complications.
Researchers will present their findings, new ideas and research experiences in keynote, invited and technical sessions. The organisers expect the exchanges to create opportunities for joint research, academic cooperation and new research projects.
Three Best Paper Awards will be given from each faculty. One research paper will receive an Outstanding Paper Award from among the selected best papers across all faculties. Selected research will later be published in the university’s regular journal.
The conference will have ResearchBuddy AI as its publication partner, while Al-Arafah Islami Bank, Southeast Bank and Abul Khair Group are supporting it as sponsors.
At the press conference, Chowdhury said greater industry-academia cooperation was needed in higher education. He said the university had primarily sought support from the banking sector for the conference, while the response from industrial institutions had been lower than expected.
PCIU has around 10 partner banks, but Al-Arafah Islami Bank supported the conference despite not being a university partner, officials said. The university recently established cooperation with Southeast Bank, while Abul Khair Group has supported various university events.
The university said more private-sector institutions should come forward to support efforts to improve higher education and suggested that the government could provide special tax rebates for such initiatives.
The press conference was attended by PCIU Treasurer Professor Dr Mohammad Ali Chowdhury; Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering Professor Dr Engineer Mofazzal Ahmed; Dean of the Faculty of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law Professor Mainul Hasan Chowdhury; Conference Convener Professor Dr Ganesh Chandra Roy; Registrar Obaidur Rahman; Controller of Examinations Md Selim Hossain; Conference Co-convener Dr Khandaker Dahir Islam; Conference Secretary Dipak Kumar Chowdhury; Proctor Rashed Khan Milon; Head of the Department of Journalism and Media Studies Dilruba Akter; Head of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering Farzina Akter; Additional Director of the Institutional Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC) Ebadat Hossain; and lecturers Pinki Chakma and Gias Uddin Riadh of the Department of Journalism and Media Studies, along with other university officials.
Organisers said the two-day conference is expected to create an active academic environment at PCIU and broaden opportunities for new connections, joint research and academic cooperation among researchers from Bangladesh and abroad.
