Program Themes
Thematic Program Co-Chairs:
Mark MacLachlan, The University of British Columbia, Canada
Katsuhiro Maeda, Kanazawa University, Japan
As chemists create new molecules and materials, processes, and computational methods, the long-term application of these is often unclear. Nevertheless, these discoveries in diverse areas of chemistry will impact the inventions and developments of tomorrow. This theme embraces the exciting developments in the field of chemistry, often before practical applications are realized. With a focus on fundamental science, the topics in this theme span the traditional fields of chemistry.
Thematic Program Co-Chairs:
Patrick Mercier, National Research Council of Canada, Canada
Michael Hoepfner, University of Utah, USA
Available and affordable energy is a key challenge facing humanity today. To meet environmental constraints related to global warming, drastic changes are required in the way we generate and supply energy. To deal with those challenges, innovative chemistry is needed on several fronts that will be explored within this theme. Symposia will focus on upgrading and utilization of conventional energy sources, energy storage strategies for electric vehicles, fuels from solar energy and artificial photosynthesis, and the computational design of materials to support clean and sustainable energy.
Thematic Program Co-Chairs:
Joelle Pelletier, University of Montréal, Canada
Stefan Lutz, Emory University, USA
Chemistry defines health and sickness. It allows us to investigate, modulate and modify living systems. The Chemistry for Health Theme will host symposia at the forefront of cellular labelling and molecular sensors, and will highlight emerging technologies in biomolecular characterization. Therapeutic advances such as natural product discovery, drug repurposing and nucleic acid technologies will be presented, along with advances in synthetic methodologies, including biological tools. We will examine the promise of artificial intelligence in accelerating molecular design. We will also address societal issues such as the molecular basis of ageing and examine the impact of our environment on health.
Thematic Program Co-Chairs:
Juris Meija, National Research Council of Canada, Canada
Jan Apotheker, University of Groningen, Netherlands
Although chemistry plays a central role in modern society, it is often marginalized and misunderstood. This theme will host symposia highlighting the positive role of chemistry in science education, commerce, the environment and climate change, international standardization, and how we can preserve and share the heritage of chemistry. Leading experts will highlight the role of modern technologies in communicating chemistry and will address how chemical analysis and synthesis bring to life many of the products we rely on.
Thematic Program Co-Chairs:
CJ Li, McGill University, Canada
Paul Anastas, Yale University, USA
Buxing Han, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China
The key concept of sustainability commands “meeting our own needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. As the central science of our society, chemistry plays an essential role to create scientific means towards future sustainability. This theme comprises various symposia of recent advances and breakthroughs in green and sustainable science and technologies, organized by leading experts in the field, to address the achievements and challenges in chemistry related to sustainability.
Technical Program Co-Chairs:
Kim Baines, University of Western Ontario, Canada
Jeremy Melanson, National Research Council of Canada
