Keynotes

Working title: The idea of motor modularity: Neural basis, development, and rehabilitative applications of muscle synergies

A neuroscientist and biomedical engineer, Vincent C. K. Cheung is Associate Professor at the School of Biomedical Sciences of The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). He obtained his B. Sc. in Mathematics and Pharmacology & Therapeutics from The University of British Columbia, Ph. D. in Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering from MIT and Harvard Medical School, and postdoctoral training from the MIT McGovern Institute for Brain Research. Prof. Cheung’s research focuses on understanding how the central nervous system controls voluntary movement and translating this knowledge into new neuro-rehabilitation strategies. His research has been supported by the Hong Kong Research Grants Council and other sponsors. His articles have appeared in Nature Communications, PNAS, and multiple IEEE journals. He was invited to speak at professional conferences, events for  general audience (e.g., TEDxCUHK), and local radio programmes. Prof. Cheung was Chair of the Hong Kong-Macau Chapter of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (2018-19). Recipient of the MIT Angus MacDonald Teaching Award (2006) and Teacher of the Year Award of CUHK Medicine (2021, 2022, 2026), Prof. Cheung has directed courses in neuroscience, human anatomy and physiology. He is at present the Associate Master of CUHK’s C. W. Chu College.

Phil James is Professor of Data Science and Director of Newcastle Urban Observatory at Newcastle University. He is an internationally recognised leader in the development of systems for urban monitoring. His research focuses on urban dynamics, environmental sensing, digital twins, AI for real-world systems, and the application of data science to understanding and managing complex systems at scale. Phil is a member of the Cyber and Local Digital Monitoring and Evaluation Expert Advisory Group (UK Government Department for Levelling up, Housing and Communities DLUHC), Secure Connected Places External Advisory Group (UK Government Department for Science Innovation and Technology DSIT), NERC Digital Research Infrastructure Investment Board (UKRI), and Floods and Droughts Research Infrastructure Community Advisory Group (NERC). He led the £8m investment for the UK’s Urban Observatory Programme and currently works on multiple projects including EPSRC’s National AI Hub for Edge Computing (£10m EP/Y028813/1), the national Hub for Decarbonised Adaptable and Resilient Transport Infrastructures (DARe) (£10m EP/Y024257/1), NERC’s Digital Solutions (£7m NE/W001985/1), ETHOS – Temperature Extremes on the Health of Vulnerable Populations (£2.5m NERC) and Fairwater (£3.5m OFWAT).

Working title: The Paralympic Brain: Exploring the Limits of Human Neuroplasticity

Kimitaka Nakazawa, PhD, is Professor in the Department of Life Sciences, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo. His research examines the neural control and plasticity of human movement, with particular interests in posture and gait, spinal and supraspinal motor control, and neural reorganization after physical impairments.

Before joining The University of Tokyo as Professor in 2009, he spent 18 years at Japan’s National Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities, where he served as a researcher, chief researcher, and director. He was Director of the University of Tokyo Sports Science Initiative from 2020 to 2023 and Chair of the Scientific Committee of the Japan Para-Sports Association from 2019 to 2024.

His group has pioneered neuroscience research involving elite para-athletes and introduced the concept of the “Paralympic Brain.” This work highlights athletes with physical impairments as unique models for understanding how long-term intensive training interacts with injury- or impairment-related changes to produce exceptional functional and structural neuroplasticity, offering new perspectives on human adaptability and neurorehabilitation.