Professor Neese was honord with an inviation to the 24th Solvay Conference on Chemistry: "Catalysis in Chemistry and Biology", which took place from 22-24 October 2016 in Brüssel.

The opening ceremony started on October 19th in the presence of His Majesty King Philippe, King of the Belgians.

Participation to the "Conseils Solvay" is by invitation only. In addition to the guests selected by the chair of the conference, a number of Belgian scientists working in the field of the conference are invited to attend as auditors.

What are the Solvay Conferences ?: The Solvay Conferences ("Conseils Solvay") are probably the most famous conferences in physics and chemistry. They are a key part of the history and development of science. They were responsible for initiating the first meeting between Einstein and Poincaré; they were highly instrumental in the understanding of the theory of quantum mechanics and later, of many other areas of modern physics and chemistry; and through the decades they have been associated with an astonishing number of Nobel Laureates. In fact, the 1911 Solvay Conference in Physics was the first international conference in physics ever organized. It was held at the invitation of Ernest Solvay, who received scientific advice from W. Nernst and H. Lorentz. More information can be found on the <link http: www.solvayinstitutes.be html solvayconference.html external-link-new-window internal link in current>website of the International Solvay Institute.