Professor Robert Mokaya to become RSC president after winning election
Professor Robert Mokaya OBE FRSC FRS said he is 'humbled and honoured' after being elected as the future president of the Royal Society of Chemistry.
He will become the first Black chemical scientist to fill the role, which he will do in the summer of 2026, succeeding Dr Annette Doherty upon completion of her two-year term.
Prof Mokaya will first serve as president-elect, starting when Dr Doherty takes over from current president Prof Gill Reid at the Annual General Meeting on 1 July.
Votes from members around the world saw Robert overcome leadership bids from Duncan Graham FRSC CChem FRSE and Annie Powell FRSC CChem to fill the prestigious position.
After his victory, Prof Mokaya commended his two election rivals and thanked voters for electing him to the position of president.
Already an appointed trustee and the chair of Inclusion and Diversity Committee, he said: "I am really humbled and also honoured at the same time. I'm very, very pleased to be given this opportunity to serve the Royal Society of Chemistry in this capacity.
"There's great history that goes with this position. I have been to Burlington House and I have seen the names of those who have been president over the last 180 years - these are people I read about when I was a little boy and was getting inspired to study chemistry.
"I have encountered these names throughout my career and to be seen and hopefully at some point in the future counted amongst those great people in chemistry is really an honour and also very inspiring."
Prof Mokaya's election victory comes at a time of great change for him. He will become the Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sheffield on 17 June, leaving the University of Nottingham after 24 years.
And just two weeks later, he will step into the role of RSC president-elect. He sees that as more of a watching brief to start with but is already looking forward to the responsibility that comes with the presidency.
He added: "The first two years are not going to be very different from my current role as trustee. For me, it really is a chance to concentrate more on learning from other people.
"I will be spending a lot of time observing, getting to know more about the Royal Society of Chemistry and understanding where we need to be as we move forward. Essentially I want to prepare myself for my term as president when it comes in two years' time.
"It's a time of change and I think it's going to be challenging for me, but I love a challenge, and I have wonderful people around me who I'm sure will support me through that process."
Some of those include Prof Reid and Prof Tom Welton, the current and past president respectively whom Prof Mokaya praised for their contributions.
Having seen first-hand what they have done for the organisation and chemistry as a whole, he wants to make similar 'positive contributions' to the future of science.
"They brought different aspects to the presidency and grew the Royal Society of Chemistry as a trusted voice," Prof Mokaya added.
Find out more about Robert Mokaya
Prof Mokaya received his BSc in Chemistry from the University of Nairobi in 1988 and was awarded his PhD from the University of Cambridge in 1992. Following a Research Fellowship at Trinity College, Cambridge, he was awarded an EPSRC Advanced Fellowship in 1996. Mokaya joined the School of Chemistry at The University of Nottingham as a lecturer in Materials Chemistry in 2000 where he is now Professor of Materials Chemistry and Pro-Vice-Chancellor Global Engagement. He joined the University of Sheffield as Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor in June 2024. He is a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award holder (2017-2022). He was awarded OBE in 2022 for services to the Chemical Sciences and was elected Fellow of the Royal Society in 2023.
His research interests are on the design, synthesis and characterisation of new forms of sustainable porous materials and the study of their structure-property relations. The research involves exploring fundamentally new synthesis methods that are simpler, cheaper, and more efficient and offer valorisation routes to materials with optimised properties for targeted sustainable energy applications.
"This is a global organisation and for me, that's really important because I see myself as a global citizen.
"If you look at my journey, I grew up in rural Kenya and then studied at the University of Nairobi. That's where I always say I was made and where I was before coming to the UK.
"Looking at some of the things that I have done and the collaborations that have actually enriched my career, many of them actually were outside of the UK. Having that visibility as a society is really important.
"I am very interested in expanding the reach of chemistry and thinking more carefully about being inclusive. We can be drivers in all of that, which is something that is very close to my heart.
"I'm really looking forward to convening and leading those conversations and making positive contributions."
RSC chief executive Dr Helen Pain will work with Prof Mokaya to chart the organisation's path for the future. She was also one of the first to commend him on his victory and believes his background with the RSC and experiences gained over the course of his life will give him a unique perspective.
She said: “I would like to congratulate Robert on his success and I look forward to working more closely with him during his presidency. He has already made a huge contribution to the RSC as a trustee and in his role as chair of the Inclusion and Diversity Committee and I am sure he will bring the same passion, enthusiasm and work ethic when he steps into this new role.
“Robert brings a unique wealth of knowledge and experience accumulated on his life-long journey through chemistry, including his education in Kenya and his long and distinguished academic career in the UK. His diverse range of insights is tremendously beneficial to the chemical sciences community.
“I would also like to thank Duncan Graham and Annie Powell for putting themselves forward for this position and thank our members for supporting the RSC as we continue to evolve. I am proud of what we are doing as a community and am excited for the future.”
- The winners of the other RSC elections that concluded last month will be announced at the Annual General Meeting on 1 July.
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