Catalysis – a process that makes chemical reactions easier and faster, while allowing new reactions to occur – forms the basis of over a third of the world’s GDP and supports life as we know it. In his plenary lecture, Sir David MacMillan described how his laboratory developed a catalysis process using only organic molecules, which he named asymmetric organocatalysis.

This led him to develop a process called cascade organocatalysis, which combines different catalytic reactions. “Nature does this all the time,” Sir David explained. “It has these biocatalytic cascades that beautifully sequence together to generate complexity from incredibly simple start materials… We as a community are now figuring out how to do [it].”

For him, this sustainable, affordable, and accessible form of catalysis opens opportunities for researchers across the globe to help build our future using nature’s abundant and renewable resources.