The Telford Gold Medal
Established in 1838, the Telford Gold Medal is the highest honor bestowed by the British Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), named after its first president, Thomas Telford. It is awarded only to exceptional journal papers that make significant contributions to civil engineering fields. Due to its stringent standard, the award is withheld if a paper of sufficient merit is not available, no awards were given between 1938 and 1952 due to WWII.
Prof. Ng’s research team, which includes researchers Dr. Usman Majeed and Dr. Clarence E. Choi, is the first team from Greater China to receive this honor since 1838. Their winning paper, "Effects of Solid Fraction of Saturated Granular Flows on Overflow and Landing Mechanism of Rigid Barriers", was recognized for its exceptional contribution to geotechnical engineering, particularly in enhancing the understanding of debris flow dynamics, which is critical for disaster mitigation.
Donald Stanley Award
Established in 2006 by the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE), the award recognizes the year's most outstanding paper in the Canadian Geotechnical Journal in honor of Dr. Donald R. Stanley’s legacy, a pioneer in environmental engineering and the original founder of Stantec Inc., a global engineering firm with over 230 offices worldwide. It celebrates excellence in research that bridges academia and professional practice in environmental protection and sustainability.
Prof. Ng won the award for his paper on plant-biochar interaction, which demonstrates that biochar-amended landfill covers enhance water retention, reduce infiltration, and boost evapotranspiration, effectively mitigating climate-related risks to soil and water resources.
Scott Sloan Best Paper Award
Named in honor of the late Scott Sloan, this award recognizes impactful papers in geotechnical engineering. This impact is based on SCOPUS citations (excluding self-citations) for the previous five years, in conjunction with the opinion of the Editors. Prof. Ng's winning work investigates plant reinforcement for slope stability, providing a science-based method for using vegetation to reduce landslide risks.
2017 Telford Premium Award - the BEST paper published in Geotechnique Letters
Professor Ng and his co-authors received the 2017 Telford Premium Award. Their paper “Coarse granular flow interaction with slit structures” (Choi, C. E., Goodwin, G. R., Ng, C. W. W., Cheung, D. K. H., Kwan, J. S. H. & Pun, W. K. Géotechnique Letters 6 (4) 267-274) was voted the Best Paper out of all published in Géotechnique Letters in 2016.
Presented by the Institution of Civil Engineers, the Telford Premium Award recognizes authors from both the industry and academia who have produced work of exceptional quality that benefits civil engineering, construction and materials science. Géotechnique Letters, published by ICE, is one of the top 5 most recognized geotechnical journals worldwide.
RM Quigley Award in Ottawa in October 2017
Professor Ng and his team were presented an honourable mention of the RM Quigley Award in Ottawa in October 2017. Their paper “Large-scale successive boulder impacts on a rigid barrier shielded by gabions” (Ng, C. W. W., Choi, C. E., SU, A. Y., Kwan, J. S. H. & Lam, C. Canadian Geotechnical Journal 53 (10) 1688-1699) was voted by board members of the journal as the number two best paper published in the Canadian Geotechnical Journal in 2016, out of a total of 296.
The Canadian Geotechnical Journal is one of the world’s top 3 geotechnical journals, and the RM Quigley Award, established in 1963, recognizes considerable contributions and achievements to the advancement of the geotechnical field.
Other Awards
| Nov 2023 | Varnes Medal from UNESCO’s International Consortium on Landslides 2022 |
| Feb 2023 | The Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation (何梁何利基金) Prize for Scientific and Technological Progress (科學與技術進步獎) 2022 |
| Jan 2022 | The 2020 National Natural Science Award (2nd class) by the State Council (中國國家2020年度自然科學二等奖（排名第1）） |
| Dec 2021 | 入选中国精品科技期刊顶尖学术论文——领跑者5000（F5000）: The 20th Huangwenxi Lecture (2017黄文熙讲座) on “Atmosphere-plant-soil-interactions: theories and mechanisms” organized by the Chinese Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing. The most prestigious geotechnical lecture in China. |
| Feb 2020 | Teaching Excellent Appreciation Award for the academic year 2018-19, HKUST |
| Dec 2018 | Recipient of the best paper published in the Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities, ASCE in 2017 |
| May 2018 | The Hong Kong Institution of Engineers best Geotechnical Paper Award 2018 |
| July 2017 | The Hong Kong Institution of Engineers Best Transactions Paper Prize 2017 |
| Dec 2016 | Top cited paper award 2015/2016 by Journal of Geomechanics for Energy and the Environment. "Numerical modelling of energy piles in saturated sand subjected to thermo-mechanical loads." Vol.1, 1-15. |
| Jan 2016 | Recipient of the 2015 Scientific Technological Advancement Award (2nd class) by the State Council of China (中國國家2015年度科技進步獎二等獎). |
| Dec 2013 | Recipient of the 2013 Scientific Advancement Technological Award (1st class) by the Ministry of Education, China (中國教育部2013年度科技進步獎一等獎). |
| Jun 2013 | Recipient of the R M Quigley Award by the National Research Council (NRC), Canada, for publishing the best paper in Canadian Geotechnical Journal in 2012. |
| May 2010 | Elected as Changjiang Scholar (Chair Professorship in Geotechnical Engineering) by the Ministry of Education in China (中國教育部長江學者講座教授). |
| Sep 2008 | Recipient of the Honorable Mention of the R M Quigley Award by the National Research Council (NRC), Canada, for publishing the 2nd best paper in Canadian Geotechnical Journal in 2007. |
| Jan 2007 | Recipient of Overseas and Hong Kong, Macau Young Scholars awarded by the National Science Foundation of China. (國家傑青)(海外). |
| Jun 2003 | Recipient of 2002 Mao Yisheng Youth Award (茅以升土力學及基礎工程青年獎) by the Chinese Institute of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering for significant contributions in Geotechnical Engineering |
| Dec 2001 | Recipient of the first Tan Swan Beng Award by the Southeast Asian Geotechnical Society for the best paper published in Geotechnical Engineering Journal between 1998 and 2001 and the 14th Southeast Asian Geotechnical Conference held in 2001(東南亞岩土工程協會頒發的 Tan Swan Beng 最佳論文獎) |
| Dec 2001 | Recipient of the first Tan Swan Beng Award by the Southeast Asian Geotechnical Society for the best paper published in Geotechnical Engineering Journal between 1998 and 2001 and the 14th Southeast Asian Geotechnical Conference held in 2001(東南亞岩土工程協會頒發的 Tan Swan Beng 最佳論文獎) |
| 1990-2000 | Best papers awards including Medal and Premium Award by the Institution of Civil Engineers (UK), Miller Prize by the Institution of Civil Engineers (UK), the Henry Adams Award by the Institution of Structural Engineers (UK). |