Charlotte Williams

I am the statutory chair in Inorganic Chemistry at the university of Oxford. I head up a research group focussed on sustainable chemistry and materials.  Our team discover new polymers and better ways to make, use and recycle them.  Our work includes fundamental new discovery and theory, as well as technology development, innovation and translation. My team and I work collaboratively with scientists and engineers in both academic and industrial laboratories. I am leading the SCHEMA sustainable chemicals and materials manufacturing hub, which brings together experts across the UK working in universities and companies in both chemical and chemical using industries. I am also the director of the UK Catalysis Hub – a UK wide network of experts focussed on how to reduce energy consumption in chemical manufacturing. I have also worked with national and international expert teams advising on how to improve sustainability in the chemical industry, including a recent Royal Society briefing on defossilising the chemical industry. I am a fellow of the Royal Society and was awarded an OBE for Services to Chemistry in 2020.I enjoy training and mentoring the next generation in scientific discovery and technology translation both in the university and through my work with companies. Public outreach is also important, recently our work has been featured in exhibitions like the London Design Museum Waste Age and in the media.  

Earlier in my career I obtained my degree and PhD from Imperial College London, followed by postdoctoral research at University of Minnesota and University of Cambridge.  I was an academic at Imperial College London until I moved to Oxford in 2016. I founded econic technologies in 2011, the company is based in Macclesfield and Runcorn with customers worldwide. I serve as a director and board member.