WiFo 2017 – GDCh-Wissenschaftsforum Chemie 2017

Dear GDCh Members, Ladies and Gentlemen,

In 2017, GDCh will celebrate its 150th anniversary as the successor to the Deutsche Chemische Gesellschaft (German Chemical Society), founded in Berlin in 1867 by August Wilhelm von Hofmann. The highlight of the anniversary year will be WiFo, the GDCh Chemistry Scientific Forum, with its significant and far-reaching slogan 'Chemistry – A Driving Force'. On behalf of the GDCh board of directors and the entire GDCh staff, I extend to you a warm invitation to join us and become part of this driving force.

The Scientific Forum WiFo will take place September 10-14, 2017, in Berlin and will begin on Sunday, September 10, in Berlin's splendid concert hall on the Gendarmenmarkt. One of the principle speakers will be chemistry Nobel laureate Roald Hoffmann, an honorary GDCh member. On Monday the program will continue with a symposium of experts on applied chemistry, including four Nobel Prize winners. On Tuesday and Wednesday our specialist groups will hold their annual meetings and will sponsor a series of probing scientific sessions. Then on Thursday all of us are invited to participate in a new and exciting dialogue format on the significant challenges raised by the Anthropocene. The symposium 'Experiment Future - Values Thinking in Chemistry', on Thursday September 14, will examine the role of chemistry in regard to the future of education, nutrition, health and sustainability. Among the outstanding personages who have already agreed to speak are Martin Brudermüller, Vice-Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF; Jonathan Forman, Science Policy Adviser of the OCPW in the Hague and 2013 Nobel Peace Prize winner; and Helga Rübsamen-Schaeff, founder and since 2015 Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of AiCuris GmbH. Following their speeches and exploration of the issues with innovative discussion formats, we will formulate a summary of our conclusions in a communiqué addressed not only to the chemical community but to political decision-makers and the general public.

The purpose of Berlin 2017 is to profile GDCh's macrosocial, pan-societal significance and move with chemistry into the future. Every one of us is needed in this effort. As a GDCh member, you are part of a strong and living network. WiFo – the Scientific Forum – is your opportunity to engage in a far-reaching exchange on science and scientific experience. You will also be drawn to our challenging satellite symposium 'Thinking the Unthinkable' on Friday, September 15. Finally, you will be on site in Berlin as 'Chemistry – A Driving Force', attuned to the heart of Germany's thriving capital city, beats with the rhythm of our times.

I look forward with great pleasure to our meeting in Berlin in September 2017. Let us celebrate chemistry together and show what we can do!

Yours truly,

Professor Thisbe K. Lindhorst, Dr. rer. nat.

President, Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker