OPCW staff member Farid Tata (right) explains the work of the organisation to a conference attendee.
The Director-General, Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü, headlined the OPCW’s participation in the 44th World Chemistry Congress in Istanbul, Turkey from 11 to 16 August 2013. The congress is organised by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) and this year features four Nobel laureates in Chemistry among its keynote and plenary speakers.
A video message by the Director-General was screened during the opening ceremony of the congress on Sunday. Other OPCW activities during the week include a workshop on the multiple uses of chemicals by Prof. Alastair Hay and Prof. Peter Mahaffy, members of the OPCW’s Temporary Working Group on Education and Outreach; a presentation [PDF – 252 KB] on the chemistry underpinning the Chemical Weapons Convention by Jonathan Forman, the OPCW’s Science Policy Adviser; and an on-site exhibit and information booth on the work of the Organisation.
The OPCW and IUPAC have deepened their collaborative relationship in recent years, and the World Chemistry Congress provides a good forum to continue those discussions. In February 2013, the IUPAC published a technical report [PDF – 152 KB] on the impact of scientific developments on the Chemical Weapons Convention. And Prof. Leiv K. Sydnes, a member of the IUPAC Bureau and former IUPAC president, published an analysis on IUPAC, OPCW, and the Chemical Weapons Convention in the July-August 2013 issue of its magazine Chemistry International.