Officiating guests of the Research and Knowledge Transfer Excellence Awards Presentation Ceremony 2025. (From left: Prof S. Joe Qin, President and Wai Kee Kau Chair Professor of Data Science at Lingnan University; Mr Michael Hui Wah-kit, Council Member; Dr Patrick Wong Chi-kwong, Chairman of the Court; Mr Augustine Lui Ngok-che, Chairman of Lingnan Education Organization and Court Member; Ms Marina Lee Man-wai, Court Member; and Prof Xin Yao, Vice-President (Research and Innovation) and Tong Tin Sun Chair Professor of Machine Learning)
This year, Lingnan University honours 55 scholars for their outstanding contributions to academic research and knowledge transfer in advancing community well-being and societal progress during the past academic year.
Lingnan University held its Research and Knowledge Transfer Excellence Awards Presentation Ceremony 2025 yesterday, 17 September, honouring 55 faculty members for their outstanding contributions to academic research and knowledge transfer, advancing community well-being and societal progress during the past academic year. The awards included the Outstanding Researcher Award, the Early Career Researcher Award, and the Research & Knowledge Transfer Fund Award, recognising faculty members for their innovative scholarship and impactful initiatives that elevate Lingnan’s global research presence.
The ceremony was officiated by Dr Patrick Wong Chi-kwong, Chairman of the Court of Lingnan University; Mr Augustine Lui Ngok-che, Chairman of Lingnan Education Organization and Court Member; Mr Michael Hui Wah-kit, Council Member; Ms Marina Lee Man-wai, Court Member; Prof S. Joe Qin, President and Wai Kee Kau Chair Professor of Data Science; and Prof Xin Yao, Vice-President (Research and Innovation) and Tong Tin Sun Chair Professor of Machine Learning.
Dr Patrick Wong Chi-kwong, who delivered the opening address, said that Lingnan reached a historic milestone this year by ranking number one in the world for SDG 4: Quality Education in the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2025—marking the first time any Hong Kong university has achieved the global top spot in an SDG category. He emphasised innovation, highlighting the launch of Lingnan HPC NexT, access to AI tools such as ChatGPT and DeepSeek, the establishment of Asia’s first United Nations University Hub on Humanitarian Innovation and Technology at Lingnan University, and the opening of the new Shenzhen Research Institute. “All these initiatives show our dedication to research, innovation, and, above all, to our motto: Education for Service. Let’s build on these successes and reach even further.”
In his welcoming remarks, President S. Joe Qin congratulated all the faculty members who were honoured for their outstanding contributions over the past year. He said, “This year has truly been remarkable. In the latest RGC funding exercise, Lingnan secured 49 competitive projects, bringing in nearly HK$30 million, our highest ever. Of these, about 10 projects were worth nearly HK$1 million or more. These achievements reflect Lingnan’s commitment to pioneering research that bridges arts and sciences, leveraging AI and interdisciplinary approaches to address global challenges. Through the Lingnan-60 hiring initiatives, Lingnan has successfully brought in numerous world-class scholars in Arts, Social Sciences, and STEM. These experts are poised to secure additional grants from the RGC and other funding agencies, thereby bolstering Hong Kong's innovation capabilities. The University remains dedicated to empowering the next generation of researchers, encouraging them to push academic boundaries and elevate Lingnan to new heights.”
Concluding the ceremony, Prof Xin Yao said, “I extend my deepest gratitude to the faculty for their unwavering commitment to innovation and societal impact. With over HK$10 million annually from the Innovation and Technology Commission for our Office of Research and Knowledge Transfer and global recognition through 14 awards at the Silicon Valley International Inventions Festival (SVIIF), five at the International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva, and three at the Asia Exhibition of Innovations and Inventions in Hong Kong, Lingnan is at the forefront of transformative research. Looking ahead, we will continue to enhance our research environment and academic development, ensuring that innovation at Lingnan delivers lasting benefits for society.”
The projects worth nearly HK$1 million or more in RGC funding span various academic disciplines, including Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Mathematics, and Physical Sciences. They comprise a project titled “Reduced-dimensional predictor learning of co-dynamic data from dynamic systems” led by President S. Joe Qin; another titled “Mathematical Modelling and Analysis of Graph Neural Networks” led by Prof Raymond Chan Hon-fu, Vice-President (Academics) cum Provost and Lam Man Tsan Chair Professor of Scientific Computing; and one titled “Advancing Scalable Point Cloud Compression with Hierarchical Representation” by Prof Sam Kwong Tak-wu, Associate Vice-President (Strategic Research), Dean of the School of Graduate Studies, and J.K. Lee Chair Professor of Computational Intelligence.
Dr Patrick Wong Chi-kwong, Chairman of the Court, gives the opening address.
Prof S. Joe Qin, President and Wai Kee Kau Chair Professor of Data Science, delivers the welcoming speech.
Prof Xin Yao, Vice-President (Research and Innovation) and Tong Tin Sun Chair Professor of Machine Learning, delivers the closing speech.
