Dean's Message

We are delighted to present you the 2^nd issue of the Faculty of Science Newsletter!

As we approach the second half of the year, with the lifting of mask mandate and social distancing measures in Hong Kong, we hope that your year has been filled with progress and inspiration.

With the increasing importance of food safety and nutrition, we are delighted to see the establishment of the Department of Food Science and Nutrition (FSN). Established in January 2023, FSN aims to fulfil the needs of a growing public awareness of food sustainability and safety which are based on the key pillars of Food Safety, Food Technology, Human Nutrition and Chinese Medicine. Through the collective efforts of our four constituent departments, the Faculty aims to provide holistic and high-quality education, cutting-edge research and knowledge transfer projects for the betterment of the whole society.

In line with our motto of ''PolyU Science Creates Impact'', we are thrilled by the great news that our research effort and excellence have been recognised by the latest application results of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) and the Research Grants Council (RGC) under the Joint Research Scheme (JRS) and Collaborative Research Scheme (CRS). Five of the research projects submitted by our scholars have received awards in the 2022/23 Exercise, with two proposals funded over HK$7 million in total under the CRS. This fund accounts for more than 20% of the total awarded funding among UGC-funded universities.

In addition, please join me in extending our congratulations to our Faculty’s scholars on their exceptional achievements, as Prof. Zheng Zijian of the Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology (ABCT) and Prof. Yan Feng of the Department of Applied Physics (AP) have been promoted to Chair Professorship. We would also like to congratulate Dr Amber Chiou (FSN) and Dr Cesar Wong (ABCT) for receiving the President’s Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Services 2022 for their effort made to the establishment of PolyU Molecular Diagnostic Laboratory (PU-MDL). The laboratory has been recognised by the HKSAR Government as having a significant role in contributing to the community for fighting against COVID-19 pandemic. We hereby offer our warmest congratulations to the aforementioned scholars and wish them all the best in scaling new heights in their future research endeavours!

Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter. We will keep you updated on the latest development and achievements of our Faculty.

Prof. Wong Wai-yeung, Raymond
Dean, Faculty of Science
Clarea Au Professor in Energy
Chair Professor of Chemical Technology

院長的話

謹此為大家送上理學院的第2期學院通訊！

較早前，香港已取消了口罩令以及社交距離措施，生活有序復常。踏入下半年，我們希望大家都能與日俱進、不斷創新。

隨著社會對食物安全和營養的意識日漸提升，我們很高興能為此創辦了食品科學及營養學系(FSN)。FSN於2023年1月創立，目標是以食品安全、食品科技、人類營養以及中醫藥為基礎，以迎合大眾對食物的可持續性及安全越來越重視的需求。憑藉四個學系的共同努力，理學院致力為學生提供全面及優質的教育，以及一系列創新研究與知識轉移項目，為整個社會作出貢獻。

在「理大科學 探理創新」的務實理念下，本院能夠得到國家自然科學基金委員會(NSFC)及研究資助局(RGC)的認可，在聯合科研資助基金(JRS)及合作研究重點項目計劃(CRS)的最新申請中取得理想成果，我們對於此卓越成績感到相當雀躍。在我們的學者提交的研究項目中，有五個項目於2022/23年度的計劃中脫穎而出，當中兩份建議書更獲CRS合共資助超過700萬港元，超過教資會資助大學總撥款金額的百分之二十。

與此同時，我們希望藉此機會向學院中取得非凡成就的幾位學者送上祝賀，當中應用生物及化學科技學系(ABCT)的鄭子劍教授及應用物理學系(AP)的嚴鋒教授，已獲晉升為講座教授。另外，我們亦恭喜邱家琪博士(FSN)及黃思銓博士(ABCT)憑著成立理大分子實驗室(PU-MDL)所作出的努力，而榮獲2022年校長特設傑出服務成就獎。在新冠疫情爆發期間，這個實驗室積極協助社區抗疫，因而獲得香港特區政府的表揚。我們在此向上述各位學者致以最真切的祝福，並希望他們能夠在未來的研究工作中，再度創出輝煌的成績！

感謝大家閱讀今期通訊。我們將會繼續為各位帶來有關理學院各項發展和成就的最新消息。

理學院院長
歐雪明能源教授及化學科技講座教授
黃維揚教授