The ISC3 Innovation Challenge is organized annually and focusses on a specific topic that follows the respective focus topic of the ISC3

ISC3, The Elsevier Foundation and Elsevier Chemistry Journals will join forces on the Elsevier Foundation ISC3 Green & Sustainable Challenge (GSCC) to promote capacity and community building in the field of green and sustainable chemistry in developing and emerging countries. The new collaboration builds on an existing Challenge partnership between the Elsevier Foundation and Elsevier’s chemistry journals with first and second prizes for €50,000 and €25,000 for sustainable chemistry projects addressing challenges in the developing world focusing on energy, water, waste reduction, agriculture, and medicine. ISC3 will contribute an additional €25,000 3rd prize for entrepreneurial spirit bringing a broad industry and policymaking network to the Challenge.

Friedrich Barth, Managing Director of ISC3, "The ISC3 is proud to partner with the Elsevier Foundation on the “Green and Sustainable Chemistry Challenge”. With the new Award for “Entrepreneurial spirit in Sustainable Chemistry” we seek to inspire the scientific community to bring sustainable solutions to the markets and help to tackle to major challenges of our times."

"For the Elsevier Foundation, partnering with ISC3 means building a stronger capacity building community around our winners, providing far greater access to experts, knowledge, innovation and grants in a burgeoning field,” added Ylann Schemm, Director of the Elsevier Foundation.

The new Prize for “Entreprneurial spirit in Sustainable Chemistry” will be awarded during the annual Challenge competition at the Green and Sustainable Chemistry Conference which hosts a multisectoral forum to enable long term viable and globally applicable contributions of green and sustainable chemistry to the UN Sustainable Development Goals between May 5-8th in Dresden, Germany. During the Challenge, the 2019 Top 5 Challenge finalists and the 3rd innovation prize winner will pitch their awards to a panel of distinguished judges. Prof. Klaus Kümmerer from Leuphana University Lüneburg, the Scientific Chair of the Green and Sustainable Chemistry Conference and the Director of Research and Education of ISC3 who chairs the judging panel, welcomes the new collaboration, "This mutual support and cooperation is an important next step to move sustainable chemistry further forward", he says.

Senior Chemistry Publisher at Elsevier, Rob van Daalen who founded the Challenge in 2015, noted, “The partnership with the ISC3 will greatly complement our existing network, going beyond our strong academic focus to include other key stakeholders—industry and policymakers-- in the green and sustainable chemistry ecosystem. This is very beneficial for our Challenge award winners and the reach of this critical field which needs multisectoral support to grow.”

Notes to editors

The official pitching event for the Top 5 Finalists will take place at the annual Green & Sustainable Chemistry Conference on Monday, May 6 in Dresden, Germany at 11:00 CET (Central European Time). The awards ceremony will be held on Wednesday, May 8 at 16:00 CET.

Reference sheets for each award winner with a more extensive biography and description of their work are available upon request.
Reporters wishing to attend the pitching event or award ceremony may contact Domiziana Francescon at +31 61 021 5901 or d.francescon©elsevier.com.>Read more about the Green & Sustainable Chemistry Challenge:

• 2019 Top 5 Finalists
• 2019 Judging Panel

About the International Sustainable Chemistry Collaborative Centre (ISC3)

The ISC3 is a globally acting, non-profit organization, multi-stakeholder platform and think tank founded in 2017 on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment and the German Federal Environment Agency to promote and develop sustainable chemistry solutions worldwide. It manages a knowledge platform and a network of experts, offers training and support for implementation especially for developing countries, carries out innovation scouting activities to discover new technologies, processes and business models. The ISC3 Innovation Hub in cooperation with DECHEMA initiates innovations in the field of sustainable chemistry and supports entrepreneurs through its Global Start-up Service. ISC3 is also active in the field of science and operates as a Research and Education Hub in cooperation with the Leuphana University.

About the Elsevier Foundation

The Elsevier Foundation provides grants to knowledge centered institutions around the world, with a sustainability focus on innovations in health information, diversity in STM, research in developing countries and technology for development. Since 2006, the Foundation has awarded more than 100 grants worth millions of dollars to non-profit organizations working in these fields. Through gift-matching, the Foundation also supports the efforts of Elsevier employees to play a positive role in their local and global communities. The Elsevier Foundation is a corporate not-for-profit 501(c)(3), funded by Elsevier, a global information analytics business.

About Elsevier

Elsevier is a global information analytics business that helps institutions and professionals progress science, advance healthcare and improve performance for the benefit of humanity. Elsevier provides digital solutions and tools in the areas of strategic research management, R&D performance, clinical decision support, and professional education; including ScienceDirect, Scopus, Scival, ClinicalKey and Sherpath. Elsevier publishes over 2,500 digitized journals, including The Lancet and Cell, more than 35,000 e-book titles and many iconic reference works, including Gray’s Anatomy. Elsevier is part of RELX Group , a global provider of information and analytics for professionals and business customers across industries.