Paul Anastas

By Erik J. Larson, PhD

Anastas is Director of Yale University’s Center for Green Chemistry and Green Engineering. He is known as the “Father of Green Chemistry” for his work on the design and development of safe and environmentally-friendly chemicals. Anastas earned his bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from the University of Massachusetts at Boston and his master’s and Ph.D. in Chemistry from Brandeis University.

Anastas is at the forefront of the “green movement” seeking non-hazardous and environmentally friendly chemicals from design to manufacture and use. He coined the term “Green Chemistry,” in fact, and his career dedicated to its research and development has earned him prestigious positions in government and in academia. For instance, Anastas has served as Science Advisor to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as well as the EPA’s Assistant Administrator for Research and Development, a position appointed by former President Barack Obama. He also served in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy from 1999-2004. In industry, he co-founded the chemical company P2 Science (2011), and Catalytic Innovations and Inkemia Green Chemicals, both in 2017.

Anastas has published ten books on chemistry, notably Green Chemistry: Theory and Practice, co-authored with chemist John Warner. He has received numerous awards, including the US Environmental Protection Agency Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017, as well as the Green Chemistry Award from the Royal Society of Chemistry, in 2016.

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