Apply Chemistry for Climate Action Challenge by The Elsevies Foundation 2026 (Up to €25,000 Prize)

Apply Chemistry for Climate Action Challenge 2026 | The portal for Chemistry for Climate Action Challenge are now open, The program  is one of the Elsevier Foundation’s flagship partnerships. The program aims at implementing green & sustainable chemistry solutions in the Global South – advancing both Climate Action (SDG 13) and Gender Equity (SDG 5). Apply now

Apply Chemistry for Climate Action Challenge 2026

The Elsevier Foundation Chemistry for Climate Action Challenge is jointly run by the Elsevier Foundation and Elsevier’s Sustainable Chemistry journals team. The Challenge is open to individuals and organizations whose projects use green and sustainable chemistry solutions to tackle some of the developing world’s greatest sustainability challenges.

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The Challenge awards projects that use green and sustainable chemistry solutions to tackle some of the Global South’s greatest sustainability challenges – encouraging researchers to come up with new solutions.

Prize:

• The winning projects will receive a prize of $25,000 each
• The winners will be announced at the 10th Elsevier Green & Sustainable Chemistry Conference (18-20 May, 2026) in Dresden, Germany.

Topic: Your proposal focus on chemistry-led climate action in developing or global south context, and
must embed gender equity or women-centric elements as part of the project

 Scope and what is out of scope for the Challenge:

• In-scope: scale-ups of early-stage projects where the prize represents most of the overall needed budget; innovative green & sustainable chemistry solutions implemented in the global South. For example, projects looking at Sustainable Chemistry Solutions: Waste Utilization; Alternative Energy Sources; Biodiversity and Ecosystem Health; Climate Change Mitigation; Community Empowerment; Sustainable Agriculture; Water Resource Management; Health and Well-being.
• Out-of-scope: projects to be implemented outside of low-and-middle income countries; projects with no gender component, educational projects without a strong scientific green & sustainable chemistry component; prize money mainly used on expensive equipment; prize money mainly used on personnel; projects in the Global South without a local implementation partner.

Challenge’s process and deadlines

The Elsevier Foundation Chemistry for Climate Action Challenge is articulated in the following phases:

• Submission phase: Proposals can be submitted during the general submission period from July 7, 2025, to October 1, 2025.
• Reviewing phase: A panel of expert reviewers will evaluate all submissions and select a shortlist of proposals to advance to the judging phase. The shortlist will be announced by October 30, 2025.
• Judging phase: Our scientific jury will thoroughly assess the shortlisted proposals to identify the Top 5 finalists. The finalist proposals will be announced on our website on January 15, 2026.
• Final presentation: The Top 5 finalists will be invited to present their proposals at the 10th Elsevier Green & Sustainable Chemistry Conference (18-20 May 2026, Dresden, Germany) to compete for the two Challenge prizes. The winners will be announced at the end of the conference.

Criteria:

• The list of the shortlisted proposals advancing to the judging phase will be published on the Elsevier Foundation website on October 30, 2025.
• The Top 5 finalists will be announced on our website on January 15, 2026.
• The winners of the Challenge will be announced on May 20, 2026 – at the 10th Elsevier Green & Sustainable Chemistry Conference and on our website.

 How to submit your proposal

You can submit your proposal on the Elsevier Foundation Chemistry for Climate Action Challenge platform at this link: https://app.oxfordabstracts.com/stages/79044/submitter

For more Information: Visit Chemistry for Climate Action Challenge