Professor Dr Zejian Chen is a recipient of the National Excellent Young Scientists Fund (Overseas) of China. His primary research interests include multiphysics coupling effects of geomaterials, rheological constitutive models and numerical simulations, low-carbon energy geotechnics, and soft soil ground improvement. Over the past five years, he has published more than 30 papers in leading international SCI journals, including Géotechnique, Computers and Geotechnics, Engineering Geology, Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, and Canadian Geotechnical Journal, and has contributed to two technical books. He has supervised postdoctoral researchers and doctoral, master’s, and undergraduate students. One of his proposed methods has been adopted by the Canadian Foundation Engineering Manual (CFEM 2023). He was awarded the Fugro Prize by the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers and the Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme by Hong Kong SAR government. 

He has led one project under the National Excellent Young Scientists Fund (Overseas)  from NSFC, one Young Scientists Fund (Category C) project from NSFC, and a completed research start-up fund project in Hong Kong, and participated as a key researcher in two major Research Grants Council projects under the Theme-based Research Scheme/Research Impact Fund, as well as several General Research Fund projects. He is a member of the Technical Committee TC214 of the International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ISSMGE), the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS), and the Early Career Editorial Board of the Journal of Geomechanics and Measurements. He has been a reviewer for more than 20 leading international journals, including Canadian Geotechnical Journal, Computers and Geotechnics, Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology, and Journal of Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering.