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East Germany is in transition as a pioneer of sustainable chemistry!
On May 15, 2025, six institutions, including the University of Greifswald, founded the “Green Chemistry East” network for sustainable chemical transformation.
East Germany is in transition as a pioneer of sustainable chemistry!
On May 15, 2025, a significant step was taken to promote the sustainable chemical industry in East Germany. Six key players signed a declaration of intent to establish the “Green Chemistry East” network. This network aims to establish an innovation ecosystem that supports the transformation of the chemical industry in this region. As the University of Greifswald reported, the participating institutions include the University of Greifswald, the Cluster of Excellence UniSysCat and the Leibniz Institute for Catalysis (LIKAT.
Eastern Germany is going through a profound upheaval due to the end of brown coal use and a decline in fossil energy imports. In this context, the chemical industry worldwide is changing towards more sustainable and resource-saving processes. The initiators of the network emphasize the crucial role of green chemistry for a climate-friendly future. The focus is on integrating basic research, applied development and industrial implementation to develop innovative solutions.
Goals of the initiative
The “Green Chemistry East” network pursues several core goals, including the transformation of the chemical industry through renewable technologies and the promotion of technology transfer, business start-ups and the use of marine biotechnology. The cooperation is also intended to promote the development of eastern Germany as a center for sustainable chemistry and strengthen the regional economy. This is supported by shared real-world laboratories and access to industrial test environments for founders.
A central point is the planned implementation of regular workshops and the “Day of Transformation”, which is to be crowned with an innovation award. Strategic funding applications and further development by a task force are also planned.
The importance of green chemistry
“Green chemistry” has established itself in recent years as a decisive factor for sustainability in the chemical industry. As the Fraunhofer Chemistry Alliance notes, this concept encompasses a set of principles formulated in the 1990s to promote sustainable chemical products and processes. The aim is to start with the selection of raw materials and use sustainable processes to achieve environmentally friendly products.
The principles of green chemistry help to include renewable raw materials and biogenic carbon sources as alternatives to fossil raw materials. Processes that minimize energy consumption and the use of chemicals are essential to ensure environmentally friendly production.
In addition, a project called “ShapID” led by nine Fraunhofer institutes aims to actively advance sustainable chemistry. As part of this project, we are working on innovative methods and technologies that are closely based on the principles of green chemistry already mentioned. The focus is on synthesis, reaction and catalysis technology as well as process and process engineering, modeling, simulation and process optimization and ultimately digitalization and automation.
Overall, it shows that the chemical sector is a central starting point for increasing sustainability across all sectors. The transformation of the chemical industry is viewed as a generational task that can only be achieved through close collaboration.