Networks

2021 European Conference on Computational and Theoretical Chemistry 

The 2021 European Conference on Computational and Theoretical Chemistry (e-EuCo-CTC 2021) was organized by the Division of Computational and Theoretical Chemistry of the European Chemical Society as a free online event on 18-19 November 2-7pm CET.

The conference was opened by the Chair Dr. Zoe Cournia (Biomedical Research Foundation, Academy of Athens) and co-Chair Dr. Hans-Peter Lüthi (Swiss Chemical Society). The President of our Division, Professor Péter Szalay introduced the European Chemical Society and the Division of Computational and Theoretical Chemistry, which is currently represented by 31 national societies from 29 countries. Session topics included Artificial Intelligence in Chemical Research, Materials, Biomolecular Systems and Electronic Structure. Each session included one invited speaker and contributed talks from Industry and Academia. 31 flash presentations were also given on these topics by participants whose abstracts were accepted for presentation. Two prizes were awarded in each of the four sessions, with one prize voted by the Scientific Committee and one prize voted by the audience via a zoom poll. You can still check the conference Twitter feed at #eucoctc2021.

Over 420 participants from 47 countries and from all academic ranks (undergraduate students, PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, junior and senior professors and group leaders) registered for the conference, with 317 attending. The speakers were represented 17 countries and showed a nearly equal gender balance (57% male, 43% female).

The recording of e-EuCo-CTC 2021. We would like to thank the organising committee, the European Chemical Society for hosting the meeting online, the Hungarian Chemical Society for hosting the website, and our session chairs, speakers and attendees. Sponsorship by IBM Research Europe, the Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling of the American Chemical Society and Sanofi Gmbh is gratefully acknowledged.

Given the excellent outcome of this event, the Division of Computational and Theoretical Chemistry is looking forward to organising the 14th edition of the EUCO-CTC series as an in-person meeting in Chalkidiki (Greece) in September 2023.

Zoe Cournia 
Biomedical Research Foundation, Academy of Athens 

Open Call: European Young Chemists’ Award

PhD students and early-career researchers attending 8th EuChemS Chemistry Congress (ECC8) are invited to submit their application for the European Young Chemist Award (EYCN). The award aims to recognise and reward younger chemists of exceptional ability who show promise for substantial future achievements in chemistry-related research fields. The EYCA is sponsored by the Società Chimica Italiana (SCI) and the European Chemical Society (EuChemS).

The award is given in 2 categories: the PhD level and the Early-career Researcher (ECR) level. The current PhD students and the young chemists who have obtained the PhD within one year before the EYCA competition/European EuChemS Chemistry Congress are considered belonging to the PhD level. The young chemists with no more than 8 years of experience since completion of the Doctoral Degree are eligible for the the Early-career Researcher (ECR) level award.

The application consists of self-nomination via an online form https://www.euchems.eu/awards/european-young-chemists-award/. The abstract acceptance from the EuChemS Chemistry Congress, two support letters and a CV are requested to complete the application.

The award is given every two years during the EuChemS Chemistry Congress. In 2020, the Gold Medal was awarded to Maria Chiara Sportelli (National Research Council/Institute for Photonics and Nanotechnologies – CNR-IFN, Italy) and the Silver Medal to Grégory Chatel (University of Savoie Mont Blanc, France) for the Early Career Research Level. At the PhD Level, the Gold Medal was awarded to Eoin Murray (T.E. Laboratories, Ireland) and the Silver Medal to Emilia Paone (University of Reggio Calabria, Italy).

Liva Dzene
Secretary of the EYCN

Chemistry Rediscovered – Winners Announced

Over the course of the last year, the European Young Chemists’ Network (EYCN), together with the generous support of the Wilkinson Charitable Foundation, has carried out “Chemistry Rediscovered – the Sir Geoffrey Wilkinson EYCN Video Competition” with the topic “Safety in Chemistry”. Now, the winners of the contest have been announced, which have been selected from the dozens of submissions by an international jury.

Pupils:

3rd Place: Woolyn Cho - Topic: White Phosphorous

2nd Place: Annalena Wallner, Paula Walz and Sophia Lieby - Topic: Safety in an Entertaining Way

1st Place: Hiskia Barthel, Jette Götz and Sophia Müller - Topic: The Story of a Glowing Destiny

Students:

3rd Place: Romel Paul B. Hilario, Alyssa Reina P. Moneda, Joanna C. Rivero and Joseph Michael G. Sioson - Topic: Often Overlooked Safety Aspects

2nd Place: Wouter Van Hoey, Sander Bossier and Radu-George Ciocarlan - Topic: General Lab Safety Rules

1st Place: Sophia Marie Castillo, Aira Dacasin, Jeff Howell Hernandez and Danielle May Lozanes - Topic: General Laboratory Safety

The videos of all 20 finalists can be found in a playlist on the EYCN YouTube channel.

The Chemistry Rediscovered team wants to thank the Wilkinson Charitable Foundation, all participants, the judges and supporters for making this contest possible. We look forward to launching the next iteration of the Photochimica photo competition later this year!

Maximilian Menche 
Chair of the EYCN