Professor Charles Jia (ChemE) was named one of five 2021 Chemical Institute of Canada (CIC) fellows for his outstanding contributions across multiple areas including: Scientific, Engineering and Technical Contributions, CIC, CSC, CSChE, CSCT Activities, Management of Science, Engineering or Technology, and Teaching, Mentorship, and Public Awareness.
Dr. Charles Jia is a professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry at the University of Toronto, where he has been directing the Green Technology Lab since 1996, after obtaining a Ph.D. degree in Material Engineering from McMaster University. Before his career in Canada, he taught at Chongqing University in China, where he obtained the first two engineering degrees. Passionate about sustainability and the well-being of the planet, Dr. Jia has chosen a critically essential but not-so-glorious research field – Industrial Waste. He is an internationally recognized expert on nanoporous carbon materials and applied sulphur chemistry. Through strategic partnerships with the non-ferrous metal and petroleum industries, his creative work has unlocked the potential of some major industrial waste in enhancing sustainability and helped strengthen Canada’s global position as a natural resource powerhouse. His pioneering work on exploring new ways to utilize carbon extracted from natural resources has helped create much-needed solutions to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and alleviate climate change. Dr. Jia is a devoted community leader and has recently served as President of the Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.