Khoo Salma Nasution is a fifth generation Straits Chinese (Baba Nyonya). She was installed into the Nasution clan in 1994. Her 'Mandailing father' is Dr. Rizali H. Nasution, one of the founders of Sumatra Heritage Trust (Badan Warisan Sumatra).

She is the author of Streets of George Town, Penang (1993); More Than Merchants, A History of the German-speaking Community in Penang, 1800s-1940s (2006), co-author of Penang Postcard Collection, (2003) and Kinta Valley: Pioneering Malaysia's Modern Development, (2004).

She was Honorary Secretary of the Penang Heritage Trust for 14 years. In 1993, she served as project manager of Syed Alatas Mansion restoration and privately undertook the restoration of the Dr. Sun Yat Sen Penang Base at 120 Armenian Street.

She was coordinator of the Sustainable Penang Initiative 1997-1999 which promoted consultations towards sustainable development. She convened two conferences, The Penang Story Conference, 2002 and the Shared Histories Conference 2003. In 2004, she was awarded a fellowship by the Nippon Foundation under the Asian Public Intellectual (API) programme. Her new website is www.lestariheritage.net

Drs. Zulkifli Lubis was born in Kotanopan the the residency of Madina (Mandailing-Natal) on 23 January 1964. He received his primary and secondary education in Kotanopan, before moving to Medan in 1983 to further his studies in anthropology at the University of North Sumatra (USU).

Since 1990, a member of the teaching staff. In 1996, he completed his masters (magister) in anthropological ecology from the University of Indonesia (UI). He was selected as a model lecturer in 1998. Drs. Zulkifli is a member of the Indonesian Association of Antropologists.

He is the secretary of Yayasan Bindu Matogu, a Mandailing environmental NGO based in Medan, and a board member of Yayasan Pengkajian Budaya Mandailing (Mandailing Studies Foundation).

In addition to being a lecturer, Drs. Zulkifli is active in research work especially in the field of ecology, environment and culture.

Mihail Florin Ionescu, who is fondly known as 'Opa Mike', fell in love with Mandailing when he visited it in 1998 and have decided to dedicate a part of his life for the promotion of Mandailing built heritage. Mike is a conservation architect from Germany. During his long career, Mike was an Architect and IT Consultant in Europe. He developed CAD applications according to DIN, ISO & SIA Standards and implemented a System for Architecture Photogrametry. Mike was also involved in the restoration of heritage buildings in Europe.

In the early 1990's, Mike came to Penang and explored Sumatra. Enthralled by the beauty of the Mandailing homeland, culture and architecture, he decided to stay.

In 1999, Mike was the survey coordinator for traditional Mandailing Architecture in three habitats in "Mandailing Julu" (Upper Mandailing). In the same year, he became guest lecturer at the Architecture Department at the North Sumatra University (USU).

He is now the resource person for Mandailing architecture at Yayasan Pengkajian Budaya Mandailing (Mandailing Studies Foundation).