THE SITUATION TODAY, NEW TRENDS, CHALLENGES AND TECHNIQUES IN THE RESEARCH AREA

ROLANDO A. SPANEVELLO

Montevideo, Uruguay

Workshop; IFS/OPCW Workshop Chemistry in Nature - Natural Resources: Chemical, Biological and Enviromental Aspects; 2008

International Foundation for Science

We can associate natural products synthesis with the mythological journey described by the Greek poet Constantine P. Kavafis in his poem Ithaca:As you set out for Ithaca,Hope that your journey is a long one …Keep Ithaca always in your mind.Arriving there is what you´re destined for.But don´t hurry the journey at all.Better if it lasts for years …For a synthetic organic chemist this journey starts with a defined objective “the structure of a target molecule”. During this journey full of adventure, we will encounter unforeseen difficulties that will have to be solved and will become the source of new discoveries.In this way, we study how to construct complex molecules with important biological activities, we develop new reactions, we use different raw materials but also we learn that to meet the demand of a growing world population there is a need for the sciences constantly to reassess and promote less intensive trends in resource utilization.The first principle of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development states that: Human beings are at the centre of concerns for sustainable developments they are entitled to a healthy and productive life in harmony with natureThe Brundtland report has precisely defined the concept of sustainability: “Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”The role of chemistry is essential in ensuring that our next generations of chemical, materials, and energy are more sustainable than the current generation. Worldwide demand for environmentally friendly chemical processes and products requires the development of novel and cost-effective approaches to pollution prevention and the use of renewable carbon to supply the world’s chemical needs. One of the most attractive concepts in chemistry for sustainability is Green Chemistry.But this concept is not the last stop in our journey to Ithaca, we can see ahead other challenges of different nature like the ethical principles that guide our work as scientist. History has shown us that with the advent of the industrial revolution the “dual use” of scientific knowledge acquired an overwhelming relevance. For this reason it is important to make efforts to transmit to the new generations the lessons we learnt from the past