2026 Bayreuth
A special occasion: the 10th Annual Meeting of the Senior Expert Chemists (SEC) took place in Bayreuth from 4–6 May 2026. The motto of the Conference is "Shaping the future with chemistry". In 2026, we senior chemists are celebrating our 20th anniversary, particularly here in Bayreuth. With almost 250 participants, the Conference was very well attended. The scientific programme and the accompanying programme can be viewed on the official GDCh website (gdch.de/sec2026).
A highlight of the programme was the lecture by Ben Feringa (2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry) before our gala evening on 5 May 2026, entitled "From molecular machines to photopharmacology". The lecture took place in the University of Bayreuth's large chemistry lecture theatre and was attended by approximately 600 people.
Numerous helpers from JCF Bayreuth took care of the organisation and moderated the lectures. We would also like to express our heartfelt thanks to them here!
This conference was also able to take place with “everything under one roof” at the Arvena Hotel in Bayreuth city centre.
The accompanying programme included:
Paths to greenhouse-gas-neutral chemistry of the future, Ferdi Schüth, MPI for Coal Research
You are never too old for nano: nanobuilding blocks for the medicine of tomorrow, Katharina Landfester, MPI for Polymer Research
Circular economy: from the “self-driving” laboratory to completely recyclable cars, Peter Seeberger, MPI for Colloid and Interface Research
Circular and non-accumulating plastics for future generations, Stefan Mecking, University of Konstanz
The Maillard reaction in brewing and what brewer’s yeast has in common with us, Thomas Henle, Dresden University of Technology
Evening lecture: Climate protection – from knowledge to age-appropriate action, Sebastian Seiffert, University of Mainz
Artificial intelligence in drug development – hype or reality? Alexander Hillisch, UCB Biosciences
Fluorine – news about an old element, Florian Kraus, University of Bonn
Redox flow batteries: an alternative for electrochemical energy storage, Ulrich Schubert, University of Jena
Start-up: BioMagnetix, biomagnetic nanoparticles for medicine, Frank Mickoleit
Evening lecture: From molecular machines to photopharmacology, Ben Feringa, University of Groningen
Biophotonics – light technologies for a long life, Jürgen Popp, University of Jena
When chemistry becomes tangible: experiments as the key to understanding, Karsten Meyer, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg
Presentation of the GDCh Prize for Literature, Journalism and Science Communication to Verena Tang
Optoelectronics meets optoionics: storing light with ions, Bettina Lotsch, MPI for Solid State Research
Healthy ageing with natural products from plants and microbes, Frank Petersen, formerly Novartis
for the 10th SEC annual meeting:
gdch.de/sec2026