Choh-Ming Li Professor of Geography and Resource Management and Director of the Institute of Space and Earth Information Science Professor Kwan Mei-po has been awarded the Lauréat d’Honneur, the highest honour conferred by the International Geographical Union (IGU), in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the international geographical community. She is the first Hong Kong scholar, as well as the first woman and third awardee from China, to receive this distinction since its inauguration in 1976.

Professor Kwan formally accepted the award on 21 August at the IGU Regional Conference in Istanbul, Türkiye. Expressing her deep appreciation and profound honour, she said: “I extend my deepest gratitude to CUHK for its excellent research environment, which enables my research to achieve exceptional results. I am also grateful to members of my research team and my collaborators for their contributions and support. I remain dedicated to advancing geographical science for a more resilient and equitable world.”

The IGU is a non-governmental international professional organisation dedicated to advancing geographical scholarship worldwide. Conferred once every two years, its Lauréat d’Honneur recognises individuals who have achieved exceptional distinction and rendered outstanding service to the work of the IGU and to the advancement of international geography. The highly competitive and rigorous selection process is overseen by an awards committee based on a comprehensive global review of leading scholars.