Prof. Karen I. Goldberg from the University of Pennsylvania received the "Frontiers in Chemical Energy Science" Award from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion (MPI CEC) in early June. The award has been presented annually since 1995 to internationally outstanding and renowned scientists. During the award ceremony, the awardee will give a keynote lecture, participate in discussion with young scientists in the region and be available for scientific discussions.

"Thank you very much for the great honor," Goldberg said happily during the award ceremony. "There is so much exciting science to discover at MPI CEC." In her talk on molecular oxygen as a reagent in late transition organometallic chemistry, the awardee not only explained what she and her team are researching, but also clarified the goal of your research to develop new environmentally friendly and economically viable methods for converting feedstocks (highly saturated feedstocks such as natural gas and alkanes, highly oxygenated materials such as CO₂, and those found in biomass) into more valuable organic products. In keeping with her presentation, she referred to the current exhibition of the Gasometer in Oberhausen, which she had visited during her visit to the MPI CEC and which had made a lasting impression on her. Using a globe projection, the ecological footprint of humans is mapped.

"With Prof. Karen I. Goldberg we were able to award an outstanding scientist. We are very pleased to call her our laureate this year," explains Prof. Walter Leitner, Managing Director at MPI CEC.

Goldberg joined the University of Pennsylvania in 2017 as the Vagelos Professor of Energy Research. She is also the founding director of the Vagelos Institute of Energy Science and Technology (VIEST). Her research focuses on developing new catalytic systems to efficiently produce chemicals and fuels from a range of available feedstocks.