Professor in Sustainable Chemistry & Director of the Green Chemistry

University of York

Biography

Helen Sneddon studied Natural Sciences at Christ’s College, Cambridge, and obtained her PhD, on The Application of b-Keto Dithianes in Natural Product Synthesis from the University of Cambridge under the supervision of Professor Steven V. Ley.  Following postdoctoral studies on the Catalytic asymmetric chemistry of Palladium II, at the University of California, Irvine with Professor Larry Overman, she joined GSK.  Whilst at GSK she has developed a particular interest in Green Chemistry as applied to the Pharmaceutical Industry, including solvent and reagent selection, metrics and the development of more efficient transformations.  She is an author of over 50 peer-reviewed publications, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry.  She took up the position of Professor in Sustainable Chemistry and Director of the Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence at the University of York in April 2022. The GCCE has close ties to the Biorenewables Development Centre, and has a particular interest in renewable feedstocks, green synthesis, sustainable technologies, and design for reuse, degradation, recovery.