The "Public Relations" working group of the Senior Chemistry Experts has been discussing chemical topics that are of great importance to society for some time. These include plastic waste, glyphosate, NO_x limits, electromobility and the energy transition.

The symposium was organised by the GDCh together with DECHEMA and the VCI and took place on 30 October 2019 from 13:00 to 17:30 in the packed Max Buchner Hall at DECHEMA in Frankfurt. A " flyer provided information about the programme and background. The event was moderated by Klaus-Peter Jäckel, Spokesman of the Board of Senior Expert Chemists.

The aim of the symposium was to convey the necessity of the energy transition from an ecological, technical, economic, political and industrial perspective. The focus was to be on what is feasible from a realistic and non-ideological perspective. In order to convey this goal, we have invited four prominent speakers with the following topics:

• Prof. Dr Manfred Fischedick, Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment & Energy:
  Ecological and technical aspects of the energy transition - challenges but also opportunities
• Prof. Dr Ferdi Schüth, MPI Mühlheim-Ruhr
  Technical possibilities for the generation and storage of sustainable renewable energies
• Prof. Dr Dr h.c. mult. Hans-Werner Sinn, President Emeritus ifo, Munich
  Possibilities and limits of the German energy transitione
• Dr Jörg Unger, BASF SE:
  The BASF Carbon Management Programme

The event was reported on in the News from the world of chemistry: Nachr. Chem. 2019, 67(12), 84.

Flyer "Symposium Energiewende, yes - but how?" for download.