Sponsored by the Canadian Catalysis Foundation
The Catalysis Award is presented to an individual who, while residing in Canada, has made a distinguished contribution to the field of catalysis. This award is presented every two years.
The 2026 awards are now open for submission.
Nominate yourself or a colleague deserving of recognition.
Press release: Award winners will be recognized at the x2026 Conference.
View the Terms of Reference and list of Past Winners
The 2026 winner of the Catalysis Award is:
Dennis Hall, FCIC
University of Alberta
Dennis Hall received his PhD in 1995 working with Prof. Pierre Deslongchamps at the Université de Sherbrooke (Quebec, Canada). Between 1995–1997 he was an NSERC PDF in the group of Prof. Peter G. Schultz at UC Berkeley. He moved to the University of Alberta in 1997 where he currently holds the Tier-1 Canada Research Chair in Boron Chemistry for Catalysis and Drug Discovery. His interdisciplinary research program centers on fundamental studies and applications of organoboron compounds. With his research team, he has co-authored over 175 peer-reviewed publications, including new synthetic methods based on transition-metal catalysis and organocatalysis. Notably, he helped pioneer the use of boronic and hemiboronic acids as air-stable catalysts for direct and mild activation of alcohols and carboxylic acids, including enantioselective transformations. His contributions in organic chemistry were recognized by a national Killam Research Fellowship (2019–2021), the 2021 R. U. Lemieux Award from the Canadian Society for Chemistry, and a 2024 Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award from the American Chemical Society. In 2017, Hall was Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada (FRSC). He currently serves as an Associate-Editor with Science Advances (AAAS).