October 26-27, 2026 | Houston, TX & Livestream
Registration will open Summer 2026. Want to be notified when registration opens? Email conference@welch1.org to be added to the mailing list.
2026 Conference Program
2026 Welch Conference on Chemical Research:
“Frontiers in Macromolecular Science”
Monday, October 26, 2026
Conference Introduction & Welcome
Session I - NATURE-INSPIRED MATERIALS
8:40 AM
Quentin Michaudel
Texas A&M University
Session Leader
8:50 AM
Dynamic Networks as a Route to Pluripotent Materials
Stuart Rowan, University of Chicago
9:35 AM
Learning from Skin: Materials and Sensing
Zhenan Bao, Stanford University
10:35 AM
Mimicking Nature: From Antimicrobials to Sugar-Responsive Materials
Heather D. Maynard, University of California, Los Angeles
Session II - POLYMER SYNTHESIS & DESIGN INNOVATION
12:30 PM
Brooks A. Abel
University of California, Berkeley
Session Leader
12:40 PM
Monomers from Polymers
Athina Anastasaki, ETH Zurich
1:25 PM
Pushing the Limits of Polymer Synthesis
Craig Hawker, University of California, Santa Barbara
Keynote Speaker
2:30 PM
Pushing the Limits of Polymer Synthesis
Joseph M. DeSimone, University of California, Santa Barbara
3:30 PM
Poster Session Happy Hour (Upstairs)
Tuesday, October 27, 2026
Session III - ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
8:30 AM
Jessica R. Lamb
University of Minnesota
Session Leader
8:40 AM
Polymer Chemistry and Architecture Drive High Performance Therapeutic Delivery
Theresa M. Reineke, University of Minnesota
9:25 AM
Two-Dimensional Polymers and Polymerizations
William Dichtel, Northwestern University
10:25 AM
Development of Radical and Cationic Polymerizations and their Application to Sustainable Materials
Brett P. Fors, Cornell University
2026 Welch Awardee Lecture
11:15 AM
To Be Announced
1:00 PM
Poster Winners Announced
Adam Kuspa, President, The Welch Foundation
Session IV - POLYMERS FOR SUSTAINABILITY
1:15 PM
Seunghyun Sim
University of California, Irvine
Session Leader
1:25 PM
Natural Product Feedstocks to Address Chemical Sustainability and Safety
Karen L. Wooley, Texas A&M University
2:25 PM
Controlling Reactivity & Selectivity towards Sustainable Thermoplastics
Frank Leibfarth, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
3:10 PM
Chemical Strategies Toward Sustainable Management of Polymers at their End-of-Life
Marc A. Hillmyer, University of Minnesota
3:55 PM
Closing
Geoffrey W. Coates, Cornell University, Program Chair