Lennart Bergström, Fellow of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA), Academician of the World Academy of Ceramics, and Professor of Materials Chemistry at Stockholm University, visited the Southern University of Science and Technology as a guest on the 451^st session of the SUSTech Lecture Series and the 258^th session of the College of Science’s “Science Lecture Series.” He delivered a special lecture titled “Reimagining and Restraining Chemistry for Sustainable Carbon-Based Materials.” The lecture was hosted by Shuhong YU, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Professor Bergström currently serves as a University Reference Group (URG) member for the Wallenberg Initiative for Sustainable Materials Science (WISE) and as the Deputy Director of the MISTRA SafeChem programme. He has long been deeply involved in colloid and materials chemistry, focusing on nanoparticle synthesis and assembly, non-classical crystallization, and interstitial material research, applying these to the development of waste-based and bio-based sustainable materials. He has received numerous honors, including the Jacob Wallenberg Award, the Stockholm Innovation Award, the Humboldt Research Award, the Swedish Chemical Society’s Norblad-Eskstrand Medal, and the 2025 Staudinger-Durrer Prize from ETH Zurich. 

In his lecture, Professor Bergström pointed out that as materials science and chemical technology continue to advance, researchers should not only focus on improving material performance and application value but also fully consider the potential environmental and ecological impacts of production and processing. Framing his discussion within the “Planetary Boundaries” concept, he explained the need to rethink research paradigms in chemistry, emphasizing the importance of promoting chemistry and materials science toward more sustainable directions while fully leveraging the innovative potential of chemistry. 

He then shared several research explorations from his team in the field of sustainable material development, highlighting the processing of organic and inorganic nanoparticle colloids based on renewable and recycled resources, as well as the development and resource recycling of bio-based and waste-based materials. He noted that sustainable material design should not only focus on the function and performance of the final product but also adopt a holistic, full-lifecycle approach covering raw material selection, processing methods, and resource recycling, aiming to reduce the environmental footprint of materials throughout their lifecycle by optimizing material composition and preparation routes. 

During the Q&A session, students and faculty enthusiastically asked about topics such as AI high-throughput preparation and the impact of material size effects on macroscopic properties. Professor Bergström responded in detail to each question, sharing insights from his own research, which created a lively atmosphere at the event.

At the end of the lecture, Academician Shuhong YU presented Professor Lennart Bergström with commemorative plaques for the “SUSTech Lecture Series” and the “Science Lecture Series.”