HKU Outstanding Academics Win Worldwide Accolades
Six remarkable HKU scholars have recently been awarded with prestigious honours for their achievements in their own disciplines.
Professor Frederick Leung is the first ever Changjiang Scholar named in the field of Mathematics Education.
Professor Zhou Zheng has been appointed a Changjiang Scholar 2013–2014.
Professor Frederick Leung from the Faculty of Education and Professor Zhou Zheng from the School of Business have been appointed Changjiang Scholars 2013–2014 by the Ministry of Education in Mainland China. Changjiang Scholars are in the top tier of China’s ‘High-level Creative Talents Plan’ which aims to recruit talented academics, establishing masters in their respective academic disciplines in order to promote development of those disciplines to the highest international level. Professor Leung is also the first ever Changjiang Scholar named in the field of Mathematics Education.
Professor Zhao Guochun (centre) and Professor Sun Min (right) receiving the second-class State Natural Science Awards 2014.
Professor Zhao Guochun and his team with members including Professor Sun Min, both from the Department of Earth Sciences, were presented with the second-class State Natural Science Awards 2014 for his research on ‘Paleoproterozoic amalgamation of the North China Craton and the assembly of the Columbia supercontinent’ which has led to significant scientific achievements highlighted by more than 200 scientific papers. The State Natural Science Award is China’s most prestigious award in natural science and Professor Zhao’s team was among two Hong Kong teams who have won the Award this year.
In recognition of his outstanding scholarship in the field of international affairs, Professor Xu Guoqi from the Department of History was awarded the prestigious Shigemitsu Fellowship by the Japan Society of Boston. The Fellowship was recently established by the Global Culture Center of the Japan Society of Boston for encouraging new research and scholarship in the field of international affairs. Being one of the world’s most eminent scholars in the fields of modern Chinese and international history, Professor Xu is currently working on a trilogy of shared history. For his latest publication, please refer to the ‘Books’ column.
Professor Xu Guoqi is one of the first recipients of the Shigemitsu Fellowship.
Professor Angela Leung (left) receiving the Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Palmes académiques from Mr Arnaud Barthélémy, French Consul General in Hong Kong.
Professor Angela Leung, Joseph Needham –
Philip Mao Professor in Chinese History, Science and Civilization, from the School of Humanities received the Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Palmes académiques from the French Ministry of National Education (Higher Education and Research) for her academic achievements and contributions to French culture. An official bestowal ceremony, chaired by the French Consul General in Hong Kong, Mr Arnaud Barthélémy, took place at the Residence of the French Consulate in Hong Kong on April 1.
Professor Vivian Yam, Philip Wong Wilson Wong Professor in Chemistry and Energy, from the Department of Chemistry, has been presented with the Ludwig Mond Award 2015 from the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) in the United Kingdom. Professor Yam was awarded for her work on the innovative design of new strategies utilising non-covalent metal-metal interactions as spectroscopic reporters for host-guest interactions and microenvironment changes, and for chemosensing and biological assays and she will be invited to give lectures at universities in the United Kingdom. It is the second time Professor Yam has been honoured by the RSC –
she was awarded the Centenary Lectureship and Medal (now renamed as the RSC Centenary Prize) by the RSC in 2005–2006.
