US chemical education going green

Mary Kirchhoff is the new director of education at the American Chemical Society (ACS) in Washington DC. In setting out her stall, green chemistry and sustainable development look set to play a major role in the development of chemical education in the US.

Mary Kirchhoff has an admirably relaxed yet stoic approach to the job in hand. As the newly appointed director of education at the ACS she has her sights set on two major goals. She believes strongly that chemistry should be taught in context to all students so that they understand its relevance to their lives. She is particularly keen to see green chemistry, a subject she has had a long association with throughout her career, promoted in the undergraduate curriculum. As industry gets greener, she says, it will expect the people hired to have some knowledge of this subject. And she is eager to collaborate with other organisations and individuals on national and international levels. Education at the ACS, which has had a rather insular reputation in the past, looks set to embrace new partners and broaden its footprint under Kirchhoff's leadership.