AOGS Axford Medal Award Recipient
Benjamin HORTON
City University of Hong Kong
Professor Benjamin Horton is Dean of the School of Energy and Environment at City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) and President’s Chair Professor of Earth Science. He is internationally recognised for pioneering research on sea-level change and coastal flood risk, advancing understanding of the processes that governed sea levels in Earth’s past and those that will shape future change under a warming climate. By integrating field evidence with geochronology and quantitative modelling, he has delivered definitive reconstructions of the timing, magnitude, and rates of sea-level rise and fall—work that has challenged established paradigms and set new directions for the discipline.
Prior to joining CityUHK, Professor Horton was Director of the Earth Observatory of Singapore and Chair of the Asian School of the Environment at Nanyang Technological University (NTU), where he held the AXA Chair in Natural Hazards. Earlier, he served as Professor of Marine Science at Rutgers University and Associate Professor at the University of Pennsylvania. He earned a BA (Hons) from the University of Liverpool and a PhD from Durham University.
A hallmark of Professor Horton’s contribution is his leadership of large international and interdisciplinary teams to develop and test sea-level models and reconstructions across all seven continents, spanning past and present climate states. His research has clarified the links between ice-sheet dynamics, ocean–atmosphere variability, and vertical land motion, providing essential baselines for projecting future coastal hazards. Complementing this, his studies of coastal wetlands, carbon storage, and ecosystem stability under rising seas have strengthened the evidence base for nature-based adaptation.
Professor Horton’s impact extends beyond academia. He has contributed expertise to major global climate and policy processes, including activities associated with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the Conference of the Parties (COP). He is frequently called upon to advise governments, agencies, and industry, and has delivered invited briefings to high-level audiences, including the Supreme Court Bench and the World Bank—demonstrating sustained commitment to public service and science communication. He also engages widely with the media and a broad range of stakeholders—community groups, practitioners, and decision-makers—to translate complex science into accessible, actionable information that supports preparedness and resilience.
His achievements have been recognised through numerous honours, including President’s Chair appointments at CityUHK and NTU. He has received major research awards from the European Geosciences Union, the American Geophysical Union, and the Geological Society of America, and is a Fellow of both the Geological Society of America and the American Geophysical Union. He is also Principal Investigator of a UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development project. Professor Horton has published over 300 peer-reviewed articles and 12 books or edited volumes, and has supervised 28 PhD students and 27 postdoctoral researchers, with 22 now in permanent academic positions. With an h-index of 91 and approximately 24,000 citations, he exemplifies sustained scientific excellence and selfless service to the geoscience community.