Mai elected Foreign Member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering

Election to the CAE is one of the highest academic honours that China bestows on a citizen of a foreign country.

Professor Mai was one of 18 foreign engineers and scientists from eight countries – including Microsoft Corporation co-founder Bill Gates – elected as CAE Foreign Members in 2017.

Professor Mai was recognised for his distinguished contributions to engineering mechanics and to the promotion of China-Australia exchanges and co-operation in technological sciences and engineering.

“Since 1979, for more than three decades, I have successfully supervised many doctoral students, worked with numerous research fellows and advised a great many visiting academics from China. Exchanges and research collaborations have continued even many years after they returned home,” Professor Mai said.

“As an ethnic Chinese, I am very pleased my significant efforts to engineering and to nurturing research talents for the Chinese technical professions and universities have been recognised by the Chinese Academy of Engineering.”

University of Sydney Vice-Chancellor and Principal Dr Michael Spence congratulated Professor Mai.

“The University is enormously proud of Professor Mai’s outstanding and lasting contributions to scientific and engineering knowledge, as well as his dedication to ensuring that the relationship between Australia and China is one of friendly collaboration defined by the exchange of ideas,” Dr Spence said.

Professor Mai will be inducted to the CAE at a special ceremony that will take place next June in Beijing during the 2018 CAE Annual Meeting.

This is not Professor Mai’s first international research recognition. He was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of London in 2008 and International Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2011.

He is also a Fellow of both the Australian Academy of Science and the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, and was named a Member of the Order of Australia in 2010.