The Rocha Medal

Since 1982, the bronze medal and cash prize is annually awarded by the International Society for Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering (ISRM) to a young researcher with an outstanding doctoral thesis selected by an appointed committee. The award is in honour and memory of Past-President Prof. Manuel Rocha. Prof. Rocha organized the first ISRM Congress and spearheaded the transformation of the ISRM into an internationally renowned scientific association. The Geomechanics Group at the University of Toronto has had the honour to have three Rocha Medal recipients. They are:
The recipients are a part of the prestigious list of past recipients.

Image from ISRM

John A. Franklin Award

Image from CGS

The honorary reward, named after the past International Society for Rock Mechanics (ISRM) President, John A. Franklin, for his exceptional contributions to the Canadian and international rock mechanics community, and to the Canadian Geotechnical Society (CGS), is presented every other year. 

The award recognizes a Canadian and/or CGS member who has recently made an outstanding and published technical contribution in the fields of rock mechanics or rock engineering. In addition, the individual has provided outstanding service to the Canadian geotechnical community. 

The prestigious John A. Franklin Award was presented to Prof. Giovanni Grasselli at the 72nd Canadian Geotechnical Conference – GeoSt.John’s 2019 award banquet. (Watch Video)

For past recipients of the award, please visit the CGS website.

Leopold Müller Award

Since 1984, a cash price (€ 3,000) is annually awarded by the Austrian Society for Geomechanics (OeGG) to honour an excellent doctoral thesis in the field of geotechnical engineering, and in line with the goals of the OeGG. The recipient is selected by the board of the OeGG and is awarded at the Geomechanics Colloquium the following year. Dr. Qi Zhao is the 2019 winner of the Leopold Müller Award for his thesis titled “Investigating brittle rock failure and associated seismicity using laboratory experiments and numerical simulations“, making him the first recipient from a Canadian university. He will receive the award at the 69th Geomechanics Colloquium 2020 in Salzburg, Austria. For past recipients of the award, please visit the OeGG website.

Dr. N.G.W. Cook Ph.D. Dissertation Award

Dr. Qi Zhao, an alumni of Professor Grasselli’s research group, was one of the recipients of the 2020 Dr. N.G.W. Cook Ph.D. Dissertation Award for an outstanding doctoral dissertation in rock mechanics or rock engineering. His thesis under the co-supervision of Professor Grasselli and Professor Nicola Tisato titled “Investigating brittle rock failure and associated seismicity using laboratory experiments and numerical simulations” was recognized by the American Rock Mechanics Association (ARMA) and is one of the most prestigious awards in rock mechanics.