Recently, the list of winners of the 19^thYoung Scientists Award and Educational Teaching Award presented by the Fok Ying Tung Education Foundation was announced. Professor Zhao Lei from the College of Geoscience and Surveying Engineering at China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing) was honored with the Second Prize of the Young Scientists Award.

Professor Zhao Lei is a Ph.D. supervisor at China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing) and currently serves as the President of the International Organization for Organic Petrology (2023-2025). She is also an editorial board member of the international journal "International Journal of Coal Geology" in the field of energy. Her research focuses on the mineralization of critical metals in coal-bearing strata, and she has made innovative achievements in the occurrence and enrichment mechanisms of lithium and rare earths in coal-bearing strata, contributing to the development of the theory of critical metal mineralization in coal-bearing strata in China. She received her Ph.D. in Applied Geology from the University of New South Wales, Australia, in 2012. In 2020, she was awarded funding from the National Natural Science Foundation of China's Excellent Young Scientists Fund. In 2023, she received the "John C. Crelling" Distinguished Contribution Award from the International Organization for Organic Petrology. She has chaired the review committees for international awards such as the John Castano Award and the Dal Swaine Award of the International Organization for Organic Petrology. As a leading research talent, she has presided over multiple national-level projects, including those funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the National Key R&D Program, and has participated as a key member in innovative research group projects funded by the foundation. Her research achievements have won her two First Prizes in Natural Science from the Ministry of Education.

The Fok Ying Tung Education Foundation, established in 1986, aims to "nurture new talents and recognize outstanding individuals" by funding and rewarding university teachers who have made outstanding achievements in scientific research and educational teaching. Since the 18^thsession, the award program has recognized both teaching and research, establishing two categories: the "Educational Teaching Award" and the "Young Scientists Award." The Young Scientists Award is intended to honor young higher education teachers who have engaged in frontline scientific research for a long time, made outstanding contributions to national economic development, social progress, and technological innovation, and achieved significant results. After rigorous selection, 165 teachers from 124 higher education institutions were awarded the 19^thYoung Scientists Award and Educational Teaching Award, including 10 First Prize winners and 155 Second Prize winners.