Vol.
34 No. 2
March-April 2012
While we have all said farewell to IYC 2011, it is not going to disappear as quickly as turning the page of our calendar. This issue of Chemistry International is full of references to IYC, be it in the new Secretary General’s column or the feature articles. Although IYC was popular worldwide, one reason it has made such a lasting impression is that it has become for some a starting point, or a commitment that echoes the year’s motto: Chemistry—our life, our future.
A commitment for life, a passion, is what the play Radiance is all about. Yes, a play, a theatrical performance. It is somewhat unusual for us to think of using a play to reach the public. And yet, the life of Marie Curie, her passion, became a lasting inspiration for American actor and playwright Alan Alda. The timing was fortuitous since the play first premiered in November 2011, right around the 100th anniversary of her 1911 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. In his interview with Paul Weiss, Alan Alda discusses the origins of the play and other questions that touch scientists today.
Turning back to IYC and key events that it engendered, another feature article in this issue is a version of the Homo Sapiens report that was presented by Michael Wadleigh in San Juan during the IUPAC Congress in August 2011. As charismatic as Michael can be, the message is quite simple and an out-loud cry for sustainability.
The third feature—also heavy on the IYC theme—presents a vision of chemists’ responsibilities towards sustainable development. Colin Humphris reports on what the 2011 World Chemistry Leadership Meeting achieved in 2011. The meeting began with a message from UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon in which he wished participants great success in “our common quest to solve global problems with chemistry’s solutions.” The 2011 WCLM was also an outreach experiment of sorts as it hosted a preview of the online forum “The Future of Sustainable Chemistry.” You can still view the forum in full at www.futurewecreate.com.
With that said, we hope that you will find this issue of Chemistry International engaging. We are venturing into new territory with the magazine and we invite you to also share your ideas and reactions at facebook.com/ChemistryInternational.
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last modified 2 March 2012.
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