Scientists from across the globe have signed a declaration today that calls for urgent action and collaboration to embed sustainability into the practice of chemistry teaching and research.
The Stockholm Declaration is a call to action urging scientists, industrialists, educators, students, and policy makers to collaborate on implementing solutions for human well-being while preserving and protecting our environment. By embracing this vision, chemistry's full potential can be harnessed as a catalyst for a fairer, more sustainable, and resilient world.
The declaration was signed by Professor Peter Licence, Head of the School of Chemistry at the University of Nottingham and other signatories, during proceedings of 198th Nobel Symposium on the topic of "Chemistry for Sustainability: Fundamental Advances."
The symposium convened scientists and engineers who are collectively driving the development of cleaner, greener chemistry and chemical processes to underpin a future that ensures the products of science are safer and more sustainable by design.
Scientists around the globe are inventing and developing new molecules, materials, and driving productivity in processes to better align them to the goals of advancing human well-being while preserving the essential biosphere and geosphere that allows life to exist and thrive. These fundamental scientific advances are necessary because more historical approaches to discovery, while producing tremendous technological breakthroughs and great wealth, have too often caused unintentional harm to both people and our planet.
The program of the Nobel Symposium introduced the newly developed declaration, organised around four central themes—each presenting well defined, actionable recommendations.
Professor Pete Licence commented: "Discussion at the symposium was both inspiring yet sobering at the same time! As a community we came together to recognise progress, however we were unanimous in agreement that we all needed to push harder. Grand challenge areas were identified and the contribution of multidisciplinary and computational approaches to aggregate data and spot patterns was recognised.
"We discussed implementation strategies and identified key stakeholders and partners to carry this work forward. This gathering marked a unified call to action—leveraging the full potential of chemistry to build a more just, sustainable, and resilient world for current and future generations.
"The signatories of this Stockholm Declaration recognise the diverse range of skillsets and activities needed to transform scientific breakthroughs into positive impact for society and the ecosystems upon which society relies."
The declaration outlines a number of measures needed to transform scientific breakthroughs into positive impact for society and the ecosystems upon which society relies.
By embracing the vision laid out in the Stockholm declaration, we can harness chemistry's full potential as catalyst for a fairer, more sustainable, and resilient world. The imperatives we have outlined can only be realised by the collective action of those who recognise the essential role of chemistry in creating a society that is conducive to all life, both now, and into the future. The call of this Declaration to individuals, organisations, institutions, and communities is to come together and engage in bringing about a positive transformative impact for our planet and for the well- being of generations to come.
Read the full declaration here:
https://www.stockholm-declaration.org/
