The Shamsher Prakash Foundation annually selects one young engineer that has made significant contributions to the field of Geotechnical Engineering and/or Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering.
Zekkos has made remarkable strides in promoting sustainability and resiliency in landfills, through his work on mechanical properties of solid waste, dynamic characterization of landfills, and generation of energy from solid waste.
Professor Zekkos specializes in geoenvironmental engineering with a focus on solid waste mechanics and energy from waste, and in natural hazard assessment, with a focus on earthquakes and landslides. Zekkos has been developing novel experimental setups in the laboratory and the field to collect data that provide new insights into material response to a broad range of environmental conditions and stressors. Most recently, he has been using sensor-equipped robotic platforms to document infrastructure field response. He has published more than 100 scientific publications and his research work has been recognized by several awards including the Middlebrooks Award, Collingwood Prize and Casagrande Award by ASCE.
Zekkos was selected by a committee of international experts from Chile, Canada, Japan, Sweden, Switzerland, and United States.
