In ARC-CBBC, industry, academia and government cooperate to redesign the chemical industry, and drastically reduce its environmental footprint. Led by Bert Weckhuysen (UU-ICC), Hans Kuipers (Eindhoven University of Technology) and Nobel-Prize winner Ben Feringa (Groningen University), the consortium celebrated its fifth anniversary on April 22, 2021. Distinguished guests Mona Keijzer, State Secretary for Economic Affairs and Climate Policy and former Dutch Prime Minister Jan-Peter Balkenende (Chairman Dutch Sustainable Growth Coalition and Chairman Major Alliance) underlined the strong position The Netherlands has developed as an innovation leader, due to programs like ARC-CBBC. In ARC-CBBC (https://arc-cbbc.nl), companies like AkzoNobel, BASF, Nouryon and Shell, collaborate with three university hubs (Groningen, Utrecht, and Eindhoven) to address climate change and sustainability challenges.
The official press release can be found here: https://arc-cbbc.nl/2021/04/reinventing-chemistry-together-2/
An article in “de Telegraaf” on the symposium can be found here: https://www.telegraaf.nl/financieel/1244479417/chemie-in-formatie
(In Dutch, requires subscription, a screenshot can be found here: https://bertweckhuysen.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Telegraaf_2021.pdf)
An article in “Research Professional” on ARC-CBBC and a possible role for the Growth Fund: https://bertweckhuysen.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/RPNL99-30-April-2021.pdf
In the image, from left to right: Marjan Oudeman, Chair of the ARC-CBBC Supervisory Board, former prime minister Jan-Peter Balkenende, Ben Feringa, Bert Weckhuysen, State Secretary Mona Keijzer, Morteza Hadian (ARC-CBBC PhD student, TU/e), and Mirjam de Graaf (ARC-CBBC PhD student, UU)