IUPAC

This project is aimed to provide the platform for chemists from developed and developing countries historically linked through THE GREAT SILK WAY to find collaborators for fruitful development of interdisciplinary green chemistry projects, both in science and in education, including public enlightenment, through establishing the network centered in Russia; to improve quality and to widen green chemistry collaboration from the West to the East.

Green chemistry provides a fruitful field for cooperation because it covers many directions of modern chemistry and creates a real platform for sustainable development. There are several networks in this field created in America and Europe, but it is still necessary to coordinate efforts of developed and developing countries. Successful 2nd International IUPAC Conference on Green Chemistry (Sept. 2008) held in Russia attracted many participants from Eastern countrues possessing historical links to Russia  (China, India, Iran, NIS and Middle East countries). It was underlined during the conference, that the great need exists to shift green chemistry networking to the East to create effective coordination in cooperative investigations through discussions, round-tables, workshops and joint projects. Nowadays Asian countries are producing great quantity of “green” investigations, but their quality needs to be improved and extended. The most attractive fields of cooperation are topics of (a) supercritical fluids (theory and practice), (b) environmental problems in the light of green chemistry, (c) ionic liquids for synthesis; (d) catalysis; (e) chemical substances from natural feedstock and (f) educational problems (new courses in green chemistry and inclusion of the elements of green chemistry into existing chemical courses). Main efforts during the project will be directed to regular virtual and personal contacts between groups and countries in collaboration, to improve the links among the countries of the former GREAT SILK WAY. The project will promote the service of chemistry to society in both developed and developing countries and will help foster green chemistry in developing countries and in countries in transition.