Professor Xiang Zhang is the 16th President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Hong Kong. He is a foreign member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, a Fellow of the American Physical Society, the Optical Society of America, and the International Society of Optical Engineering.

Professor Zhang received his PhD from UC Berkeley, MS from the University of Minnesota and MS/BS from Nanjing University, China. His research focuses on materials physics, metamaterials and nano-photonics. He has published over 390 journal papers including over 90 publications in Science and Nature family series and given over 350 Keynote, Plenary and Invited talks at international conferences and institutions. In 2008, Professor Zhang’s research was selected by Time Magazine as one of the “Top Ten Scientific Discoveries of the Year”. His research team’s work on “Casimir effect” was selected as one of the Top 10 Breakthroughs for 2019 by Physics World.

A renowned chemist and pioneer of nanoscience, Professor Chunli Bai was President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the first Chinese President of The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS). Professor Bai’s rigorous research in scanning tunnelling microscopy leads to the breakthrough of the first laser atomic force microscopy in China, and is instrumental to numerous nanotechnological advancements.

His research achievements have been honored by numerous accolades, including the TWAS Medal Lecture in Chemistry and the UNESCO Medal of “Contributions to Development of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology”. Additionally, Professor Bai’s standing as a scientist has been recognized internationally as a member or foreign member of academies such as the National Academy of Sciences of the US, and the Royal Society and Royal Society of Chemistry of the UK.

Professor Chen Lin is Chair and Stelux Professor in Finance, Associate Vice-President at HKU, and Associate Dean (Research and Knowledge Exchange) of the HKU Business School. He serves as the Director of the Centre for Financial Innovation and Development and the Doctor of Business Administration Programme. His research interests include banking and financial institutions, corporate finance, financial technology, entrepreneurship and innovation, and finance and economic development.

Professor Lin’s work can be found in major finance journals and conferences, and he has provided consultation services to the American Finance Association, European Finance Association, and the World Bank. Currently, he is a panel member of the Research Grant Council of Hong Kong, a Currency Board Committee member of the Hong Kong Exchange Fund Advisory Committee, and an Advisory Council member and research fellow at HKIMR of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority.

Mr Shirui Jia is the Chairman and Party Secretary of the Xinxing Cathay International Group. Mr Jia pursued his academic journey at the Shanghai Institute of Railway and Beijing Jiaotong University, where he obtained a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in engineering respectively. He has over 30 years of experience in the rolling stock industry, and his proficiency in the field has been acknowledged through his recognition as a professor-level senior engineer by the China National Railway Group.

Prior to his current position, Mr Jia has also served as Vice President of the CRRC Corporation Limited and China CNR Corporation Limited. For his contributions in leading Xinxing Cathay International Group as the first batch of pilot units for deepening reform of state-owned enterprises, he was elected China Economic Person of the Year in 2022.

Mr Donghseng Li is the chairman and CEO of the TCL Technology Group Corporation and has brought the company to the forefront of the consumer electronics industry and played a pivotal role in the globalisation of China’s electronics industry. He has been named “China Economic Person of the Year”, “Asia Businessman of the Year”, and “Top 25 Global Business Leaders” by CCTV, Time, and CNN respectively.

Mr Li served as a representative of the 16^th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and delegate of the 10^th, 11^th, 12^th, and 13^th National People’s Congress, and was bestowed the National Model Worker title and the National May 1^st Labor Medal. As one of the first entrepreneurs in China following the nation’s opening-up, he was honoured with the title “Reform Pioneer” at the 40^th anniversary of the PRC’s reform.

Ms Poman Lo is the Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Regal Hotels Group, Vice Chairman and Executive Director of Century City Group, Vice Chairman of Regal REIT, Vice Chairman & Executive Director of Cosmopolitan International Holdings and Executive Director of Paliburg Group. She is the Founding Managing Partner of AlphaTrio Capital, an Asia-focused sustainable technology fund empowering the next wave of green tech unicorns to provide disruptive solutions for the world’s most pressing environmental challenges.

Ms Lo serves as an Adjunct Professor teaching sustainable business management and impact investing at The University of Hong Kong and The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. She founded the non-profit Institute of Sustainability and Technology with a mission to nurture the next generation of ESG talent through executive education and advance the sustainability agenda through interdisciplinary research and international conferences.

Mr Eric Chi-ho Tung has been Executive Director at the Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited (SHKP) since 2013, and serves as a member of the Executive Committee, executive director of SUNeVision Holdings Ltd, and director for subsidiaries of the SHKP.  Holding a Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Studies and a Bachelor of Architecture from The University of Hong Kong, he is a member of The Hong Kong Institute of Architects and a Registered Architect.

Mr Tung joined SHKP in 1987 and has taken on increasing responsibilities in project management, sales, and marketing for a number of signature projects of SHKP in Hong Kong, Singapore, and mainland China.

Professor Ching-chuen Chan is Honorary Professor at the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering of the University of Hong Kong, and the first Hong Kong academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. With his rich industrial and academic experience in the development of electric machines and power systems, Professor Chan is widely recognised as the “Father of Asian Electric Vehicles”.

Professor Chan was elected Fellow of the Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers, Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences, Fellow of the prestige Royal Academy of Engineering U.K., Fellow of the Ukraine Academy of Engineering Sciences, and Honorary Fellow of the Hungarian Academy of Engineering. Among his numerous accolades, he has been awarded the Hong Kong Institution Gold Medal, World Federation of Engineering Organizations Medal of Engineering Excellence, and the Royal Academy of Engineering Prince Philip Medal.

Professor Huadong Guo is Professor at the Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Director-General of the International Research Center of Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals, and Honorary President of International Society for Digital Earth. He is an Academician of the CAS, a Fellow of The World Academy of Sciences, and a Foreign Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Finnish Society of Sciences and Letters.

Professor Guo’s research centers on the fields of remote sensing, radar for Earth observation, and digital earth science, which has garnered numerous awards and accolades. In addition, he has established the SDG Big Data Platform and initiated the Digital Belt and Road Program to promote international cooperation on big data applications for tackling environmental and societal challenges.

Professor Kebin He is a professor of the School of Environment and Dean of the Institute for Carbon Neutrality at Tsinghua University, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Vice Chairman of the National Expert Committee for Ecology and Environmental Protection, and the Chairman of the National Teaching Steering Committee on Environmental Science and Engineering.

Professor He focuses on the research of complex air pollution. He conducts research in the fields of the identification of particulate matters and complex air pollution, characterization of complicated emission sources and multi-pollutant control, and the coordinated control of air pollution and greenhouse gases. He was selected as a Elsevier Most Cited Chinese Researchers in 2014-2023 and Clarivate Global Highly Cited Researchers in 2018-2023.

Professor Jianping Huang is a distinguished professor and founder of the College of Atmospheric Sciences, Lanzhou University, China. His research focuses on semi-arid climate change by combining observations, numerical modeling, and theoretical studies. He established the theoretical framework of a semi-arid climate change mechanism that emphasizes the effects of aerosol-cloud-precipitation, land-atmosphere and ocean-atmosphere interactions on climate change in semi-arid regions.

In recent years, Huang has pioneered a series of studies on oxygen cycle and land cancer, which opened up a new field of climate change research. Huang is among the most highly cited researchers for three consecutive years in 2021, 2022 and 2023 according to Clarivate, with an H-Index of 73. He was elected as a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2021 and a Fellow of The World Academy of Sciences in 2023 for his notable contributions.

Professor Peidong Yang is a Chemistry Professor and S. K. and Angela Chan Distinguished Chair Professor in Energy at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a senior faculty scientist in the Materials and Chemical Sciences Division of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. He is a member of both the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Professor Yang is known particularly for his work on semiconductor nanowires and their photonic and energy applications including artificial photosynthesis. He is the director for California Research Alliance by BASF and one of the co-directors for the Kavli Energy Nanoscience Institute at Berkeley. He has cofounded three companies: Nanosys Inc, Alphabet Energy Inc. and Infinity Innovation Inc..

Professor Alice Hughes’s work focuses on the interface between conservation ecology and conservation action. She has published over 200 papers in a range of journals, and is the chief editor of Climate Change Ecology. Her research has a primary focus on the distribution of species, drivers of loss, and the development of mechanisms to reduce biodiversity loss, reduce spillover risk through OneHealth approaches, and the development of frameworks to manage landscapes and species to enable a more sustainable future.

Professor Hughes and her team utilise diverse data to enable the development of new approaches, then integrate this into policy and practice through her roles on various NGOs, IGOs and through UN meetings such as the CBD and CITES, where their data has enabled the uplisting of various species for more effective conservation. By providing a bridge between science and filling key data gaps, Professor Hughes hope to enable a transition to a more sustainable, and biosecure future.

Dr Xin Li is currently a professor and the deputy director at the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research (ITP), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), and holds the position of director at the National Tibetan Plateau Data Center at ITP/CAS. His primary research focuses on land data assimilation, remote sensing, and integrated modeling of hydrological and cryospheric processes at the river basin scale. Dr Li earned his B.S. degree in GIS and Cartography from Nanjing University and Ph.D. degree in Remote Sensing and GIS from CAS. He was a member of WCRP/GEWEX scientific steering committee and is presently a member of the International Science Advisory Panel of Global Water Futures programme.

Dr Li also serves on the editorial boards of Science Bulletin, Science China Earth Science, Journal of Hydrology, Vadose Zone Journal, Remote Sensing, Big Earth Data and other international journals. He has published over 500 journal articles and coauthored 10 books. Dr Li is the lead scientist of WATER and HiWATER, which are two comprehensive remote sensing ecohydrology experiments conducted sequentially in recent years in China. He has been a recipient of the First-Class Natural Science Prize and the First-Class Science and Technology Progress Prize of Gansu Province, and the Outstanding Science and Technology Achievement Prize of the CAS.

Professor Jian Lu is the Dean of College of Engineering and Chair Professor at the City University of Hong Kong. He is an academician of the National Academy of Technologies of France and a Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences. He serves as the committee member on Innovation, Technology and Industry Development of the HKSAR as well as a board member of the Hong Kong Alliance of Technology and Innovation. He also serves as the Chairman of the Hong Kong Material Research Society and the Director of Hong Kong Branch of National Precious Metals Material Engineering Research Center. He is also a Member of WNEVC Science and Technology Committee, World New Energy Vehicle Congress (WNEVC).

Professor Lu’s research interests include advanced low carbon energy (H2, Nuclear, Solar, Wind) and new energy car, advanced manufacturing (3D/4D printing) and bioimplants, advanced POCT system for cardiovascular diseases. He has been awarded the 12th Guanghua Engineering Science and Technology Award of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and the French Knight of the National Order of Légion d’Honneur.

Professor Wei Pan is currently Head of Department of Civil Engineering at The University of Hong Kong. He is also Executive Director of HKU Centre for Innovation in Construction and Infrastructure Development (CICID), Director of Net Zero Laboratory and MiC Laboratory, and Professor in Construction Engineering and Management at Department of Civil Engineering of HKU. From late 2022 to early 2024 Professor Pan was Acting Executive Vice-President (Administration and Finance) of HKU. Prior to that, he was Associate Vice-President (Research and GBA) and Associate Dean of Engineering (Masters) of HKU.

Professor Pan is specialised in smart and sustainable construction engineering and management. His research interests cover modular integrated construction (MiC), prefabrication, construction automation and robotics, smart and sustainable infrastructure, net zero carbon, and lifecycle assessment. He has authored over 350 publications and supervised over 80 doctoral and post-graduate researchers.

Professor Xiaoling Zhang is a member of the Institute for Climate and Carbon Neutrality (ICCN) and holds the position of full professor in the Department of Real Estate and Construction, Faculty of Architecture, at HKU. Professor Zhang’s research primarily focuses on understanding the complex relationship between humans and the environment, with a particular emphasis on energy-ecology-material nexus; anthropogenic cycles, energy & resources systems in shaping global environment changes; nature-based technological & engineering solutions in achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs).

Her methodology involves utilizing multi-scale optimization models that integrate environmental science, engineering management, economics, ecology, and energy systems. In recent years, her research has been dedicated to exploring affordable yet effective ‘net zero’ technologies and systems, including renewable energy systems and clean energy technologies. In recognition of her contributions, Professor Zhang has been honored as a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher in Cross-Field for the years 2022 & 2023. Furthermore, since 2020, she has been listed among Stanford’s top 2% most highly cited scientists in the field of Environmental Engineering.

Professor Peng Gong is Chair Professor of Global Sustainability and Vice-President and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Academic Development) of HKU. He was Professor and Chair of the Department of Earth System Science and Dean of the School of Sciences at Tsinghua University. He has taught in the Department of Geomatics Engineering at the University of Calgary and the Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management at the University of California, Berkeley. In 2000, he founded the International Institute for Earth System Science at Nanjing University and in 2004, served as the founding director of the State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science.

His major research interests include mapping and monitoring of global environmental change, modelling environmentally related infectious diseases such as schistosomiasis, avian influenza, dengue, and COVID-19, and healthy cities. He is the author/co-author of over 600 articles and 10 books, and has chaired/co-chaired 9 research reports on climate change and health and healthy cities in China. Internationally, he has served as a member of the Earth League, the Future Earth Advisory Committee, the Earth Commission, and the Publishing Committee of the American Geophysical Union. He is also a member of the editorial board or advisory group of more than 10 international publications including the Lancet.