SusChem End of Year Message

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Dear members of the SusChem community,

2022 is approaching, but before giving you my best wishes for the end-of-year celebrations, we can take a moment to reflect on the past year and the huge opportunities ahead of us for the chemicals sector and its wide research community (RTOs and universities). 

With the European Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability (CSS), a crucial part of the EU Green Deal and its zero-pollution ambition, as well as the digital transformation of the industrial sectors, we all see a call for more Research and Innovation for safe and sustainable chemicals and materials. Sustainable chemicals and materials have a central role to play in delivering the goals of the Green Deal initiatives, speeding-up innovation and game-changing technologies, as well as ensuring a sustainable and competitive Europe, new products and processes that are Safe and Sustainable-by-Design! As a platform that brings together different stakeholders – industry, academia, policy makers and the broader society – we can take on these challenges as our long standing SusChem community by discussing how to renew the European Research and Innovation agenda along the Green Deal agenda and the specific challenges linked to the CSS.

The SusChem SIRA is a must read in our journey to a sustainable future. It was published in 2019, but still recommends today technology priorities that can become solutions, with a focus on the main pillars of SusChem: Advanced Materials, Advanced Processes and enabling Digital technologies as well as their synergies.

SusChem highlights for 2022: Stay tuned!

  • Launching SusChem Technology Roadmap on Safe and Sustainable-by-Design: This document will be launched in Q1, with the goal to set the scene, introducing the challenges before getting deeper in the value chains through more specific roadmaps.
  • Uniting SusChem Stakeholders: We want to bring together the SusChem community to address common innovation challenges and debate priorities crucial to the sustainability of the European chemicals sector. We plan to have a SusChem stakeholder event in 2022 which will address the CSS challenges and solutions.
  • Matchmaking: The European Innovation Council (EIC) and the chemicals industry will join forces in organising a matchmaking event with the goal to enhance cooperation on innovation and sustainability between industry, coordinated by Cefic, and start-ups (beneficiaries of EIC), to solve identified challenges. This event is expected to take place during Q2.
  • And more to come! If not already, follow us on Twitter or LinkedIn to stay informed.

Keep on your radar:

  • Check out the initiatives at national level by our 17 SusChem National technology platforms (NTPs)
  • SusChem will further study the impact of digital technologies within the chemical sector and investigate case studies, in line with the EU priorities. The publication of a 'Digital Technologies' document is planned in the first quarter of 2022.
  • Don’t forget to register to Cefic's Future Chemistry Network, a free platform with the goal to raise awareness of the latest developments in sustainable chemistry, help promote stronger markets in the EU and to accelerate chemical innovations which are Safe and Sustainable-by-Design.

On behalf of the SusChem Board and the SusChem secretariat, thank you for your continued commitment to our platform and activities.

Have a very Merry Christmas and a happy “sustainable” New Year.

We look forward to seeing you in 2022!

Best wishes,

Josef R. Wuensch
Chairman of the SusChem Board