When speaking of industry, particularly the chemical industry and the environment, we cannot avoid acknowledging its tremendous potential for innovation. Sometimes "part of the problem", the chemical and life sciences industry has become more and more "part of the solution", in particular concerning sustainable development. We often forget that we live on average twice as long and more comfortably than we did a hundred years ago. This is largely thanks to innovative products developed by researchers.
Chemical and life science companies are active in developing new materials that will allow us to revolutionise our modes of transportation and ways of consuming tomorrow. Cars continue to become lighter, safer and more energy efficient. Tomorrow, more and more of bio-refineries will transform renewable resources into raw materials and biofuels. Not to be forgotten is the tremendous potential of hydrogen, which can also be "carbon-free". Thanks to the "Solar Impulse" project, a solar-energy-propelled airplane presently in the experimental stages, perhaps one day we will be able to circle the globe with emitting less than a kilo of CO2.
Innovation also helps us to improve the insulation in our homes, produce electricity through alternative means such as solar cells, the combustible battery and windmills. Today, the "passive house" heats itself, is self-illuminating, and allows one to cook without consuming energy; tomorrow, the "smart energy home" will produce energy instead of consuming it. As for biotechnology, it contributes substantially to the efficiency of our laundry detergents, while lowering the temperatures required for their use. And the list goes on and on, because all these projects are part of the involvement of the sustainable chemistry sector. The future of the chemical and life sciences industry is more than ever linked to the environment. This represents not only a shared destiny, but also a tremendous opportunity for development.