Rising Star Award

This is for UK-based geotechnical/geo-environmental engineers and engineering geologists with up to five years of industry experience – or up to three years, if the entrant has completed a PhD degree – who have shown innovative thinking, astute business acumen, made a significant contribution to a project, or demonstrated technical ability through research. 

Ademide Adewunmi
Balfour Beatty

With a BEng in Mechanical Engineering (First Class Honours) from the University of Leicester and an MSc in Engineering Design (Distinction) from Loughborough University, my journey transitioned into Ground Engineering. Starting as a Graduate Design Engineer at Balfour Beatty Ground Engineering in 2022, I was promoted to Design Engineer in 2024. I have led significant projects such as the Holdenhurst Storm Tank and LIDL Belvedere Storage Warehouse. As a lead geotechnical design engineer, I developed competitive piling solutions, selected optimal piling methods, and gone beyond my role to perform comprehensive project estimations. I have supported over 15 projects, achieved EngTech status with ICE, and actively volunteered with STEM and AFBE. These experiences have shaped my career and contributed to the success of Balfour Beatty in delivering innovative ground engineering solutions.

Jola Brown
WSP

As a passionate geotechnical engineer, I am recognised for blending technical expertise with innovative problem-solving. Key contributions include the development of Python-based automation of Principal Inspection monitoring programs. This initiative received client recognition, internal awards, and led to a comprehensive guide adopted as a reference across National Highway. Additionally, co-leading workshops to enhance Principal Inspections has helped promote innovative approaches that modernise geotechnical practices. Active participation in the ‘Innovative Ideas’ Programme has also involved generating online surveys and defining technical principles for digital design tools, further advancing geotechnical practices across the company. Beyond technical work, I look to inspire future engineers by promoting geotechnical engineering through STEM workshops and local ICE clubs, presenting at events and company-wide cascades, sharing insights across the industry. As a finalist in this year’s GE Early Career Challenge, I also demonstrated creativity and enthusiasm needed to advance the field and inspire its next generation.

Rebecca Calderon
Robert Bird Group

I am a geotechnical engineer with design lead experience in large and complex commercial and residential developments in the UK, New Zealand and the Middle East. My buildings expertise focuses on design, construction and monitoring of deep basements and foundations in complex ground conditions and with challenging constraints. In addition, I have experience with infrastructure design in New Zealand, with specific focus on earthworks and slope stability and stabilisation. I am dedicated and hardworking, showing engagement in all aspects of the ground engineering profession. I actively participate within the engineering community, where I have recently been on the Young Engineers Auckland Committee, establishing learning platforms and providing networking opportunities for my wider engineering community.

Korin Cross
Binnies

Korin’s extensive experience, from analyst in the military to site engineer and geotechnical consultant, has resulted in her becoming a strong geotechnical engineer. Contributing to a wide variety of projects, she has shown an ability to adapt and quickly understand technical nuances. She has led the Finite Element Modelling (FEM) capability within her team, completing various designs including dewatering large excavations near critical infrastructure, designing proof of concepts for relatively new and untried construction methodologies, and establishing methods to assess the dynamic safeties following the International Commission on Large Dams asserting pseudo-static methods of analysis were unsuitable for seismic analysis. Her work on reviewing contractor’s methodologies and as-built information for a complex construction scheme identified concerns of basal failure during construction and lasting effects to the integrity of the founding material. Her intervention was instrumental in prompting early warnings, risk assessments and contingency planning to safeguard the project outcome.

David Foo
Arup

David is an all-round geotechnical engineer at Arup, with consistent academic excellence, innovative problem solving skills on live projects, and commitment to contribute back to the industry. David made significant contribution to an underground station box’s rock-socketed tension pile design by creating an award-winning innovative automated design workflow, which resulted in reduced human error and savings in carbon, resource time and cost. He demonstrated sound problem solving skills and commercial awareness as a resident engineer at Medway brownfield ground investigation site, with novel foundation re-use investigation technique proposed. David is highly committed to contributing to the industry. He is collaborating with academia and supervised an MSc dissertation at Imperial College London. He shares knowledge through presentations, paper publication and attending symposium. He serves as Ground Forum Undergraduate Mentoring Programme Liaison on the BGA early careers committee and encouraged interested university students, particularly those from under-represented backgrounds, to join our industry.

Nina Kemp
BakerHicks

Nina joined BakerHicks in 2021 as a Graduate Engineering Geologist. Subsequently she has successfully completed our inhouse graduate programme and received two promotions. The first in 2023 and second in 2024 recognising her contribution, knowledge , skills and problem solving abilities as she has become an important member of the Ground Engineering team. Her career commenced following achieving a Bachelors degree in Geology from Liverpool University and a Masters in Engineering Geology from Newcastle University. For her masters Nina won Best Engineering Geology student. In December 2021 Nina's masters dissertation was published as a paper and was also a finalist at the BGA Masters Prize. Nina is passionate about Ground Engineering, and shares her enthusiasm with others, to encourage the next generation of ground engineers.

Freddie Linley
Geoquip Marine

Over the past three years at Geoquip Marine, I have advanced from a graduate to project engineer, gaining experience across various offshore ground investigation projects. I have contributed to all stages, from planning and fieldwork to lab testing and reporting. Notably, I managed a lab testing campaign for an offshore windfarm, generating over £1,000,000 in revenue and helping to secure subsequent phases worth ten of millions. On an international windfarm project, I led a team to interpret geotechnical and geophysical data, helping build the ground model used in the interpretive report. As a project engineer, I lead teams of up to 10 and currently head a taskforce to create an offshore training scheme for new graduates. I’ve developed innovative VBA tools to improve workflows and co-authored a paper on machine learning for geotechnical investigations. I'm progressing toward my ICE CEng chartership and am truly passionate about geosciences.

Ahmed Saadeldein
Bachy Soletanche

With over four years of diverse pure geotechnical experience spanning design and on-site roles across the UK, Germany and Egypt. I have made significant contributions to large scale projects delivering deep shafts, diaphragm and secant walls, and bored piles. As designer within a contracting firm, I combine practical site expertise with digital innovation and sustainable design practices, ensuring efficient and impactful project outcomes. I am deeply passionate about highlighting the critical role contractors play in ground engineering. My dedication extends to mentoring young professionals and undergraduates, alongside encouraging young engineers at my university in Egypt to choose ground engineering as specialization for better future. In 2023, I was part of the winning team of the first GE and Mott MacDonald Early Career Challenge, and was recognized as Highly Commanded at the FPS Rising Star Award 2024. My journey demonstrates how contractors can lead and shape the future of ground engineering.

Oliver Savill
AtkinsRéalis

As Regional Lead for the Drones for Surveys and Inspections network at AtkinsRéalis, I drive the development and progression of our technical offering while exploring how we can utilise our expertise to capture and deliver excellent data to our clients. This data augments traditional project delivery, improving the quality, safety, and sustainability of data capture, expanding the range of information we can consider in engineering assessments, and improving the value we provide to our clients. In addition to my project work, I volunteer in my local community, recently supporting a local sixth form careers event by sharing details of my experience in industry, and spending time improving homeless accommodation. I have further engaged in STEM outreach by fostering relationships between AtkinsRéalis and universities to further investigate the relationships between aerial data and geotechnical characteristics to ensure we provide efficient, quality data to clients leading to successful and sustainable project outcomes.

Sam Taylor
Arup

Driven by authentic curiosity and enthusiasm, Sam joined the ground engineering industry as a civil engineering graduate. Over four years, he’s made significant contributions to projects across the UK, such as leading complex and unique foundation investigations in London, or as part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade geotechnics team, designing geotechnical assets along the rail corridor. He brings more experience, knowledge, and skills back to London to continue developing in urban and energy geotechnics. Beyond projects, Sam actively engages with and creates activities within industry and Arup geotechnics. He runs the UK and Europe-wide Arup Soil Mechanics Club, fostering innovation and collaboration. He also organises a UK & Ireland-wide Arup camping/geology trip and started a 'Box of Silly Ideas' to encourage creative thinking within the office. Sam is committed to the growth of our challenging, and exciting, industry, as we move into a digital world and aim to meet net-zero.

Jacques Tott-Buswell
SLPE

My interest in offshore geotechnical engineering took root early in my academic career, driven by a fascination with the complexities of soil-structure interaction. In 2019, during my master’s project, I explored finite-element time-domain simulations to better understand these interactions. That work laid the foundation for my continued research, allowing me to develop and refine ideas throughout my postgraduate studies and bring them into industry through government-backed initiatives. Currently, I work alongside OWT foundation engineers at SLPE, focusing on estimating soil-structure fatigue in monopile systems. My role involves developing nonlinear dynamic models for structural health monitoring, with the aim of improving infrastructure resilience and extending the lifespan of offshore structures. I’m passionate about bridging research and application, ensuring that innovative engineering solutions translate into real-world impact.