Chemistry for the Future: From Basic Science to Real-World Impact: Part 1

Chemistry for the future demands more than innovation — it requires a shared guiding framework that aligns scientific progress with the well-being of people and planet. The Stockholm Declaration on Chemistry for the Future was born from precisely this conviction. Together, the panel will reflect on the vision that brought the Declaration into being — namely, the recognition that while chemistry has driven extraordinary technological progress, the field must now urgently reorient itself toward solutions that are safe, sustainable, and equitable by design. The discussion will explore what the Declaration’s five core imperatives — spanning molecular design, risk transparency, education, data accessibility, and policy alignment — mean in practice for our society. Beyond the text of the Declaration itself, the panelists — all original signatories of the Stockholm Declaration on Chemistry for the Future — will turn their attention to the road ahead: what concrete steps individuals, institutions, and governments must take to move from commitment to action. The panel will debate priorities, identify barriers to implementation, and propose tangible pathways for the global chemistry community to harness the full potential of their discipline in the service of both people and planet.

Future sustainable synthesis demands the production of fine chemicals, pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, pigments/dyes and organic materials efficiently in high atom-economy, with minimal operation steps, in green solvents, under mild conditions, and using readily available and/or renewable feedstocks (namely, CO2, N2, water, methane, and biomass). However, despite the tremendous success of synthetic chemistry for the past two centuries, the green chemistry reaction toolbox is quite empty, with scarce options. This talk will discuss our efforts over the past decades in crafting unpathed ways to fill this empty toolbox, footing the foundation for future sustainable chemical productions.

The transition toward a carbon-neutral and circular society requires materials to be designed according to the principles of Green Chemistry and the vision outlined in the Stockholm Declaration. In particular, polymeric materials must be developed not only for performance during use but also for reuse, repair, and recycling. Traditionally, polymers rely on irreversible covalent bonds between repeating monomer units, which limits their recyclability. To address this challenge, our research explores dynamic polymers based on reversible bonding systems. Among these, 2π+2π cycloaddition reactions offer a promising strategy for constructing circular polymer systems. Through topochemically controlled monomer-to-polymer transformations, these reactions enable the development of functional materials such as self-healing polymers and reusable adhesives. We also report bio-based circular polymers derived from lignin, using vanillin and syringaldehyde obtained from lignin oxidation to synthesize cinnamate-containing monomers. These materials form photo-crosslinkable and decrosslinkable polymer networks. In addition, polymers derived from renewable feedstocks such as soybean oil are introduced. Finally, we present new environmental assessment tools that extend the conventional E-factor concept by incorporating product circularity. These studies highlight recent advances in Green Chemistry and circular polymer research at Kyoto University and in Japan.

Changing how we do chemistry is a key piece to achieve the necessary transition to a truly sustainable and more just society. One crucial element for such a transition will be the adoption of the green chemistry-inspired safe and sustainable by design paradigm, in which the design phase is regarded as the crucial phase to embed functionality AND sustainability considerations into molecules – through their inherent properties – throughout their whole life cycle. Crucial elements include the use of renewable rather than depleting feedstocks, using non-hazardous rather than toxic reagents, and ensuring degradability at end of life instead of environmental persistence. Here, we present recent work out of the Yale Center for Green Chemistry and Green Engineering aligned with the safe and sustainble by design paradigm.

The Stockholm Declaration on Chemistry for the Future calls for the redesign of chemical products and processes to reduce harm by design (I), the integration of sustainability risks into investment and regulatory frameworks (II), the incorporation of systems thinking and life-cycle perspectives in education (III), transparency in chemical data (IV), and the alignment of governmental policies with safe and sustainable chemistry (V). In Chile, we have been working to translate these principles into practice by connecting interdisciplinary research, higher education, and engagement with public institutions. At the laboratory level, our research on the design and synthesis of bioactive molecules and functional materials integrates green chemistry principles, such as safety, degradability, and life-cycle performance, from the earliest stages of development. This approach treats sustainability not as an afterthought, but as a design constraint. The same philosophy informs a broader framework in which systems thinking, planetary boundaries, and life-cycle assessment are central components of a Green Chemistry and Green Engineering course. It also guides ongoing research initiatives addressing antimicrobial resistance under a One Health perspective and pharmaceutical post-consumption management through comparative analysis of international take-back systems. Through academic leadership and collaboration with governmental and international partners, this experience illustrates how decisions in purposeful chemistry can translate from basic science to structural policy engagement, offering a practical and context-sensitive pathway for advancing the goals of the Stockholm Declaration in Latin America and other emerging contexts.