Core Chemistry for an Ever‐Changing World

Chemistry connects disciplines and translates discovery into application. Yet there is an uncomfortable truth: while chemistry itself evolves rapidly, chemistry education often does not.

For more than two decades, the Bologna Process and the Tuning initiative have shaped chemistry education across Europe. The European Chemistry Thematic Network (ECTN) played a leading role in this transformation by defining core knowledge, competences, and outcomes for chemistry degree programmes. Through the collaboration of more than one hundred universities, chemical societies, including the GDCh, and partners from accreditation bodies and industry, a shared European framework for chemistry education emerged. This achievement strengthened academic quality, student mobility, transparency, and mutual recognition across the European Higher Education Area.

However, the scientific and societal context of 2026 differs profoundly from that of 2000. Climate change, energy transition, health crises, sustainability, geopolitical conflict, migration, and cybersecurity are reshaping Europe and the world. Simultaneously, artificial intelligence, automation, and data science are rapidly becomin

Leitartikel