Our mission statements

The GDCh's mission statements were developed by a moderated working group at a strategy development workshop in November 2018. In addition to the President and the Executive Director of the GDCh, members of the working group included several members of the Board of Directors, employees of the office and other representatives of various GDCh structures. In accordance with the vision "We are discovering chemistry for a better world", the participants defined the first three mission statements. The fourth mission statement on communication was developed at a digital workshop in December 2021.

1. The GDCh is a lively network of committed members

For us this means:

 

• We provide attractive offers that arise through a transparent strategy-based process
• We support members on their career path
• We promote active regional and GDCh structures
• We use digital communication channels
• We promote exchange across generations and disciplines

2. The GDCh is relevant in society and politics

For us this means

 

• We conduct science-driven discourses
• We show options for action and scenarios to support decisions
• We inform politics, public administration and media
• We arouse interest and joy in chemistry
• We address socially relevant topics

3. The GDCh is a globally leading society

For us this means

 

• We live diversity and equal opportunities (see Mission Statement Equal Opportunities in Chemistry )
• We promote international exchange at member level
• We strengthen Germany's reputation as a location for chemical research and development
• We have partnerships with other global leading companies
• We actively participate in international chemical organizations

4. The GDCh creates new forms of cooperation and communication

For us this means:

 

• We offer individually tailored services
• We promote new forms of virtual exchange and support the activities of our members with digital infrastructure
• We have a global digital and analog presence, network and try out new things
• We provide trustworthy and relevant information for science, business, politics and society on digital platforms.
• We are breaking new ground to convey the fascination of chemistry in a simple and understandable way
  

Our story

In 1867, Adolf von Baeyer and others founded the German Chemical Society (DChG) in Berlin, with the renowned chemist August Wilhelm von Hofmann as its first president. The following year, the society published its first scientific journal, the "Berichte der Deutschen Chemischen Gesellschaft," which is now published in the European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry and the European Journal of Organic Chemistry.

The second predecessor organization of today's GDCh, the German Chemical Society (VDCh), was founded in 1887. Its membership magazine is Angewandte Chemie, which still exists today. While the DChG primarily unites members from universities, the VDCh focuses on employees in the chemical industry.

President of the German Chemical Society
Chair of the Association of German Chemists

The first job placement service for chemists was set up under the umbrella of the VDCh in 1900. Today the GDCh Careers Service supports job seekers. At the same time, the first Divisions were founded within the VDCh - sub-organizations that still significantly shape the character of the GDCh today. The 50th anniversary of the DChG on April 18, 1918 coincided with the 100th birthday of the founding president August Wilhelm von Hofmann. The early years of the 20th century also saw the establishment of internationally recognized scientific awards such as the Liebig commemorative coin and the Emil Fischer Medal, which are still awarded today. In 1921 the DChG, VDCh and the predecessor organization of today's VCI jointly founded Verlag Chemie (VCH), today Wiley-VCH GmbH.

The Nazi era also left its mark on the GDCh's predecessor organizations. This is reflected, among other things, in the so-called "Führer Principle," the dismissal of Jewish employees, and the integration into the Nazi League of German Engineers.

The history of the GDCh's predecessor societies was later extensively researched by the GDCh. In 2015, the study " Chemists in the Third Reich " was published, commissioned by the GDCh and written by science historian Helmut Maier.

New beginning in 1949: The founding of the German Chemical Society (GDCh)

After the war, neither the German Chemical Society (DChG) nor the German Chemical Society (VDCh) continued. Instead, both organizations were merged into the German Chemical Society ( GDCh), founded initially in the British zone in 1946 and then throughout West Germany in 1949. The first Chair and president of the GDCh was the future Nobel laureate Karl Ziegler. By the 1950s, membership had already exceeded 5,000.

In 1953, the Chemical Society in the GDR (CG) was founded in the German Democratic Republic
Chair of the Chemical Society of the GDR

By 1958, the GDCh had over 10,000 members, and in 1962, the GDCh's office moved to its current location in Frankfurt am Main. While the 1960s were characterized by a deepening of the organization's content and expertise, the 1970s and 1980s saw the advancement of environmental commitment (including the establishment of the Advisory Committee on Environmentally Relevant Existing Substances (BUA)) and internationalization.

As a result of German reunification in 1990, the members of the Chemical Society decided to dissolve on December 31, 1990. Approximately two-thirds of the then approximately 4,500 members of the Chemical Society subsequently joined the GDCh, whose membership rose to over 25,000 by 1992.

In the second half of the 1990s, the German Chemical Society (GDCh) initiated the reorganization of the continental European chemistry journal landscape. Under the leadership of the GDCh, national journals of European chemical societies were merged into new, joint European journals under the umbrella of ChemPubSocEurope, now Chemistry Europe. This subsequently led to the creation of Chemistry - A European Journal and many other highly successful journals.

In 1997, the young members were given a structure within the GDCh with the JungChemikerForum (now JungesChemieForum; JCF).

Together with the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and other chemistry organizations, the German Chemical Society (GDCh) coordinated the national "Year of Chemistry" in 2003 to mark the 200th anniversary of Justus von Liebig's birth. The Senior Expert Chemists (SEC) launched in 2006.

With the beginning of the new millennium, international networking activities gained increasing importance. The GDCh was one of the leading forces in the 2004 transformation of the former Federation of European Chemical Societies (FECS) into the European Association of Chemical and Molecular Sciences (EuCheMS, now the European Chemical Society ), and in 2010 hosted the 3rd EuCheMS Chemistry Congress in Nuremberg, which attracted approximately 2,500 attendees. In 2011, the GDCh played a key role in organizing the International Year of Chemistry, proclaimed by the United Nations and IUPAC.

The international focus continued in the following years. Additional European journals were launched, including ChemistryOpen, the first fully open-access society journal, in 2011. Cooperation with EuCheMS and IUPAC expanded. In 2013, the GDCh exceeded 30,000 members for the first time.

In 2017, the GDCh celebrates the 150th anniversary of the founding of the German Chemical Society, the older of the two predecessor societies, and in 2024 the German Chemical Society itself will be 75 years old.

In the 2020s, collaborations with fellow professional societies at home and abroad will be further expanded. The five major mathematical and scientific societies (in addition to the German Chemical Society, the German Society for Geosciences (GDCh), the German Society for Mathematics (DMV), the German Society for physics (DPG), and the German Society for Biology (VBIO)) are joining forces under "Science Connects." They publish joint press releases, statements, and position papers and host parliamentary evenings in Berlin. Topics such as climate change, sustainability, and artificial intelligence are addressed.