Professor Steven Ley is Emeritus Professor of Chemistry at the University of Cambridge.  He is also a Fellow of Trinity College and was 1702 Professor of Chemistry for 21 years.  Steve obtained his PhD from Loughborough University with Professor Harry Heaney and afterwards carried out postdoctoral research with Professor Leo Paquette (Ohio State University) and then Professor Derek Barton (Imperial College).  He was appointed as a lecturer at Imperial College in 1975, promoted to Professor in 1983, and became Head of Department in 1989.  In 1990 he was elected to the Royal Society (London) and was President of The Royal Society of Chemistry from 2000-2002.  Steve’s research interests are varied and span many disciplines including new synthetic methodologies, the total synthesis of natural products and the development of enabling technologies for chemical synthesis - especially in the area of flow chemistry technologies.  Four spin-out companies have emerged from these research interests, mostly recently New Path Molecular.  Steve has published over 900 papers and has been honoured with 50 major awards including (since 2009): the Tetrahedron Prize for Creativity in Organic Chemistry (Elsevier); Heinrich Wieland Prize (Boehringer Ingelheim, Germany); The Paracelsus Prize (Swiss Chemical Society); The Royal Medal (The Royal Society, London); The Longstaff Prize (The Royal Society of Chemistry); the Franco-Britannique Prize (Société Chimique de France); and the IUPAC-Thales Nano Prize in Flow Chemistry. Professor Ley is also recipient of the 2018 Arthur C. Cope Award.

Synthesis is changing in response to our modern resource conscious world. The principles of green chemistry are evolving as the interfaces and boundaries in science are less obvious, providing a new stimuli for future discovery. The invention and application of new chemical reactivity continues to be a primary driver since this opens up so many strategic opportunities for synthesis.

“Complex synthesis remains a challenging occupation requiring an exceptional level of experimental skill, extensive knowledge of both mechanistic and molecular reactivity, and a bold, inventive, and creative spirit. It is the combination of these qualities that transforms the synthesis process from one of simple logistics to an art form.” Steve Ley.