Three research projects led by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) were today awarded a combined total of HK$167 million by the Research Grants Council (RGC)'s Areas of Excellence (AoE) Scheme and the Theme-based Research Scheme (TRS) 2023/24. HKUST also leads the highest number of funded projects among all local universities, and has secured the largest single funding amount of HK$87.1 million for one of its projects.
The three studies - covering climate change forecast and mitigation in the Greater Bay Area, landslide risk management, as well as regulation of digital assets in Hong Kong, will receive approximately HK$142 million from the RGC.
Congratulating the research teams, HKUST President Prof. Nancy IP said, "As a university dedicated to translating research into innovative and impactful solutions to address local and global challenges facing society, our accomplishments in the AoE and TRS schemes are testimonies of our commitment to research excellence. It is particularly exciting to see that two of the HKUST-led awarded projects will be jointly undertaken by faculty members from both HKUST and HKUST(GZ) campuses, demonstrating enhanced synergy that arises from complementary basic and applied research. We will continue leveraging our research capabilities to fuel innovation in the city, across the region, and around the world."
Also expressing his joy, HKUST Vice-President (Research & Development) Prof. Tim CHENG, said, "HKUST being recognized by the two most prominent RGC funding schemes is a momentous achievement. It is a testimony to the exceptional talent and unwavering dedication of our faculty members, researchers, and research students, who have invested countless hours of hard work to drive impactful research. Moving forward, we will continue to elevate our research capabilities and forge meaningful collaborations with esteemed researchers globally. By doing so, we will further advance research in Hong Kong, tackle pressing world issues, and contribute to the betterment of the world."
The three research projects are:
#including funding from RGC and matching fund from universities concerned.
About The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) (https://hkust.edu.hk/) is a world-class research intensive university that focuses on science, technology and business as well as humanities and social science. HKUST offers an international campus, and a holistic and interdisciplinary pedagogy to nurture well-rounded graduates with global vision, a strong entrepreneurial spirit and innovative thinking. Over 80% of our research work were rated "Internationally excellent" or "world leading" in the Research Assessment Exercise 2020 of Hong Kong's University Grants Committee. We were ranked 2nd in Times Higher Education's Young University Rankings 2023, and our graduates were ranked 30th worldwide and among the best from universities from Asia in Global Employability University Ranking and Survey 2022. As of early 2023, HKUST members have founded 1,645 active start-ups, including 9 Unicorns and 11 exits (IPO or M&A), generating economic impact worth over HK$400billion. InvestHK cited QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021 to demonstrate the performance of five world's top 100 local universities in several innovation-centric areas, among which HKUST ranked top in four engineering and materials science subjects.
