Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Dr. h.c. Klaus Kümmerer

21335 Lüneburg, Universitätsallee 1, C13.311b
Fon +49.4131.677-2893, klaus.kuemmerer@leuphana.de
Professorship of Sustainable Chemistry and Material Resources

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Vita

Prof. Dr. Klaus Kümmerer is Professor of Sustainable Chemistry and Material Resources at the Institute for Sustainable Chemistry (INSC). His research areas include green and sustainable chemistry and pharmacy, applied cheminformatics and material chemistry, environmental behavior of chemicals, material resources, and Benign by Design. Klaus Kümmerer's research and consulting activities have a strong international focus: He has been Director of the Research & Education Hub at the International Sustainable Chemistry Collaborative Center since 2017 and member of the High Level Roundtable on the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability of the European Commission since 2021. In 2023, he was ranked 16th worldwide out of a total of 99,567 scientists in the field of environmental sciences according to the Stanford University Ranking. In terms of citations, he was ranked first in Germany. In 2023 he received the Wöhler Award of the German Chemical Society for Sustainable Chemistry. In 2024 he was awarded with the Verdienstkreuz am Bande des Verdienstordens der Bundesrepublik Deutschland („Bundesverdienstkreuz“; Cross of Merit on Ribbon of the Federal Republic of Germany, awarded by the President of Germany Frank Walter Steinmeier). In March 2025 he has been honoured with the Honorary Doctorate of the University of Ghent/Belgium, in May 2025 the Honorary Doctorate of the University of Helsinki.

Professional Career

  • since 2017: Director International Research and Education Sustainable Collaborative Centre (ISC3), Leuphana University Lüneburg and Bonn
  • since 2016: Co-Founding-Editor und Co-Editor-in-Chief von Current Opionion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry; https://www.journals.elsevier.com/current-opinion-in-green-and-sustainable-chemistry
  • since 2015: Founding Editor und Editor-in-Chief von Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy; https://www.journals.elsevier.com/sustainable-chemistry-and-pharmacy/
  • since 2015: Editor von Chemosphere Environmental Pollution
  • 2012 – 2016: Dean of Research at the Faculty of Sustainability, Leuphana University Lüneburg (Germany)
  • 2011 on-going: Director of the Institute for Sustainable Chemistry and Environmental Chemistry Leuphana University Lüneburg (Germany)
  • since 2010: Full Professor for Sustainable Chemistry and Physical Resources at the Leuphana University Lüneburg (Germany)
  • 2008 – 2010: Commissioner for Environment, University Medical Centre Freiburg
  • 2008 – 2010: Deputy Chair of the Commission of Environment and Sustainability University Medical Centre Freiburg
  • 2005: Associate Professor at the University of Freiburg im Breisgau
  • 2005: Invitation as Guest Professor at the Department of Chemistry at the UFSM (declined)
  • 2003 – 2010: Head of the Section for Applied Environmental Research at the Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University Medical Centre Freiburg
  • 2003 – 2010: Head of the Unit for Applied Environmental Research
  • 2003 – 2008: Coordinator for teaching at the Department of Environmental Health Sciences
  • 2002: Visiting Professor at the Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA, Department of Chemistry, Prof. Dr. G. Klopman
  • 1999 – 2003: Senior Research Fellow/Assistant Professor at the Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University Medical Centre Freiburg
  • 1999: Venia legendi for Environmental Chemistry and Environmental Hygiene, Habilitation thesis on pharmaceuticals in the environment, University of Freiburg
  • 1992 – 1999: Research Fellow at the Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University Medical Centre Freiburg
  • 1990 – 1992: Head of the Chemistry Department, Institute for Applied Ecology, Freiburg, Germany

Education

  • 1986 – 1990: PhD in Chemistry on the analysis of organic sulphur compounds in the aquatic environment, University of Tübingen
  • 1986 – 1990: Studies on analysis of organic pollutants and heavy metals in waste
  • 1986 –1989: Remote study course “Ecology and its Biological Basis” at the German Institute of Remote Studies (certificate)
  • 1986: Diploma in Chemistry on leaching of heavy metals by landfill effluents from solidified sludge sewage, University of Tübingen 
  • 1980 – 1986: Studies in chemistry at the Universities of Würzburg (Vordiplom) and Tübingen (Diploma)

Member of Boards/Committees

  • 2024: Member of 9th Government Commission of the State of Lower Saxony (Circular Economy)
  • 2023: Member of the Academic Board of the European Centre for Advanced Studies
  • 2021: Member of the European Commission’s High Level Roundtable on the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability
  • since 2020: Member of the Interdivisional Committee on Green Chemistry for Sustainable Development (ICGCSD) of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC)
  • 2017 – 2021: Member of the Advisory Committee of the Government of Lower Saxony
  • since 2016: Chair of the jury of the Elsevier Green and Sustainable Chemistry Challenge Award
  • 2016 – 2019: Member of the Managing Board of United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) Global Chemical Outlook II  (published spring 2019)
  • 2015 – 2017: Member Advisory Council of the International Sustainable Chemistry Collaborative Centre (appointed by the German Federal Minister for the Environment)
  • 2015 – 2017: Chair of the Working Group “Future Waters” within the Senate Commission on Water Research of the German Research Council (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft)
  • 2014 – 2017: Substitute National delegate in the management board of COST-Action TD 1203 Food waste valorisation for sustainable chemicals, materials & fuels (EUBis)
  • 2011 – 2017: Member of the Senate Commission on Water Research of the German Research Council (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft; re-appointment 2014-2017)
  • 2011 – 2021: Member of the Management Board of the European Technology Platform SusChem on behalf of the German Chemical Society (Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker)
  • 2011 – 2018: Member of the Head Committee of the Division “Sustainable Chemistry” in the Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker, re-election 2015-2018)
  • 2007 – 2010: Head of the working group “Sustainable Products” of Division Sustainable Chemistry in the Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker

Projects

  1. Systematic approach for the synthesis of carbohydrate-based ionic liquids (CHILS) combined with their design towards biodegradability in aquatic environment („Benign by Design“)
    Klaus Kümmerer (Project manager, academic)
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    Project: Research

  2. Complementary use of mechanical, physical and chemical technologies for the development of comparative recycling concepts for complex plastic-based automotive components
    Klaus Kümmerer (Project manager, academic) , (Project manager, academic)
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    Project: Research

  3. The InteRnatIonal ecosystem for accelerating the transition to Safe-and-Sustainable-by-design materials, products and processes
    Klaus Kümmerer (Project manager, academic) , Oliver Olsson (Project manager, academic) , Christina Apel (Project staff)
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    Project: Research

  4. Towards a more sustainable European pharmaceutical production of APIs
    Klaus Kümmerer (Project manager, academic) , Oliver Olsson (Project manager, academic)
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    Project: Research

  5. Analytische Methoden, Konzentrationen und Persistenz ausgewählter Pharmazeutika gegen die Coronavirusinfektion Covid-19 in niedersächsischen Oberflächengewässern
    Klaus Kümmerer (Project manager, academic)
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    Project: Research

View all projects

Publications

Books and anthologies

  1. Kritische Metalle in der großen Transformation
    Andreas Exner (Editor) , Martin Held (Editor) , Klaus Kümmerer (Editor) , 2016 1 ed. , 342 p.

    Research output: Books and anthologies › Collected editions and anthologies › Research

  2. Waste Water Reuse and Current Challenges
    Despo Fatta-Kassinos (Editor) , Dionysios D. Dionysiou (Author) , Klaus Kümmerer (Editor) , 2016 Cham , 261 p.

    Research output: Books and anthologies › Collected editions and anthologies › Research

  3. Advanced Treatment Technologies for Urban Waste Water Reuse
    Despo Fatta-Kassinos (Editor) , Dionysios D. Dionysiou (Editor) , Klaus Kümmerer (Editor) , 2016 Cham , 305 p.

    Research output: Books and anthologies › Collected editions and anthologies › Research

  4. Green and sustainable pharmacy
    Klaus Kümmerer (Editor) , Maximilian Hempel (Editor) , 2010 Berlin, Heidelberg , 313 p.

    Research output: Books and anthologies › Collected editions and anthologies › Research

  5. Xenobiotics in the Urban Water Cycle: Mass Flows, Environmental Processes, Mitigation and Treatment Strategies
    Despo Fatta-Kassinos (Author) , Kai Bester (Author) , Klaus Kümmerer (Author) , 2010 1 ed. , 509 p.

    Research output: Books and anthologies › Collected editions and anthologies › Research

View all publications

Journal contributions

  1. Predicting the biodegradability of active pharmaceutical ingredients using freely available in silico models: new application area or impossible?
    Sabrina Groth (Author) , Klaus Kümmerer (Author) , Oliver Olsson (Author) , 01.06.2026 , in: Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy, 51 , 13 p.

    Research output: Journal contributions › Journal articles › Research › peer-review

  2. Tales of the tides: Pattern-based non-target analysis of the Elbe River
    Jonas R.L. Schneider (Author) , Klaus Kümmerer (Author) , Jörn Logemann (Author) , Michael Radke (Author) , 15.05.2026 , in: Journal of Hazardous Materials, 509 , 10 p.

    Research output: Journal contributions › Journal articles › Research › peer-review

  3. Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) landscape: Mapping state of the art approaches along the innovation process and developing good practices
    Christina Apel (Author) , Klaus Kümmerer (Author) , Gemma Mendoza (Author) , Cristina Cerrillo (Author) , Guillermo Ormazabal (Author) , Catherine Colin (Author) , Lutz Walter (Author) , Andrea Nam (Author) , Rita Denisenko (Author) , Marcel Meeus (Author) , Dmitri Y. Petrovykh (Author) , Annika Batel (Author) , Irantzu Garmendia Aguirre (Author) , Lya G. Soeteman-Hernández (Author) , 01.04.2026 , in: Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy, 50 , 19 p.

    Research output: Journal contributions › Journal articles › Research › peer-review

  4. Safe-and-Sustainable-by-Design (SSbD) as an enabler - Positioning SSbD within current chemistry frameworks
    Lya G. Soeteman-Hernández (Author) , Christina Apel (Author) , Emma Strömberg (Author) , Klaus Kümmerer (Author) , 01.04.2026 , in: Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy, 50 , 18 p.

    Research output: Journal contributions › Journal articles › Research › peer-review

  5. Assessments of life cycle and biodegradation properties uncovered distinct profiles of pharmaceutical excipients guiding selection for drug formulations
    Mila Bading (Author) , Evan Griffing (Author) , Oliver Olsson (Author) , Jake Harris (Author) , Jochen Scher (Author) , Atsushi Sakurai (Author) , Michael Overcash (Author) , Klaus Kümmerer (Author) , 28.12.2025 , in: Green Chemistry, 27, 48 , p. 15568-15581 , 14 p.

    Research output: Journal contributions › Journal articles › Research › peer-review

View all publications

Contributions to collected editions/anthologies

  1. The Concept Benign by Design
    Neele Puhlmann (Author) , Klaus Kümmerer (Author) , 01.01.2025 First Edition ed. Oxford , p. 17-29 , 13 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/anthologies › Chapter › Research › peer-review

  2. Sustainable Chemistry - Path and Goal for a More Sustainable Textile Sector
    Klaus Kümmerer (Author) , Lisa Keßler (Author) , 25.10.2020 Cham , p. 75-104 , 30 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/anthologies › Chapter › Research › peer-review

  3. Degradation and elimination of anticancer drugs by water and wastewater treatment - toxicity and biodegradability before and after the treatment
    Carlos Alexandre Lutterbeck (Author) , Ênio Leandro Machado (Author) , Klaus Kümmerer (Author) , 01.01.2020 Cham , p. 139-168 , 30 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/anthologies › Contributions to collected editions/anthologies › Research › peer-review

  4. Green chemistry and its contribution to industrial biotechnology
    Daniel Pleissner (Author) , Klaus Kümmerer (Author) , 01.01.2020 Cham , p. 281-298 , 18 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/anthologies › Chapter › Research › peer-review

  5. Umgang mit Pestiziden und deren Transformationsprodukten bei der Regenwasserbewirtschaftung
    Oliver Olsson (Author) , Birte Hensen (Author) , Klaus Kümmerer (Author) , Jens Lange (Author) , Nicole Jackisch (Author) , 20.03.2019 Aachen , p. 24/1 - 24/8 , 8 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/anthologies › Article in conference proceedings › Transfer

View all publications

Activities

  1. Struktur-Bioabbaubarkeitsbeziehungen für die Entwicklung von in der Umwelt bioabbaubaren ionischen Flüssigkeiten
    Ann-Kathrin Amsel (Speaker) , Suman Chakravarti (Coauthor) , Oliver Olsson (Coauthor) , Klaus Kümmerer (Coauthor)
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    Activity: Conference Presentations › Research

  2. Modelling biodegradability based on OECD 301D data for the design of mineralising ionic liquids
    Ann-Kathrin Amsel (Speaker) , Suman Chakravarti (Coauthor) , Oliver Olsson (Coauthor) , Klaus Kümmerer (Coauthor)
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    Activity: Conference Presentations › Research

  3. Academic education in the field of sustainable chemistry
    Ann-Kathrin Amsel (presenter) , Rebecca Holtmann (Coauthor) , Klaus Kümmerer (Coauthor)
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    Activity: Presentations (poster etc.) › Research

  4. Modelling biodegradability based on OECD 301D data for the design of mineralising ionic liquids
    Ann-Kathrin Amsel (presenter) , Suman Chakravarti (Coauthor) , Oliver Olsson (Coauthor) , Klaus Kümmerer (Coauthor)
    →

    Activity: Presentations (poster etc.) › Research

  5. Modelling biodegradability based on OECD 301D data for the design of mineralising ionic liquids
    Ann-Kathrin Amsel (Speaker) , Suman Chakravarti (Coauthor) , Oliver Olsson (Coauthor) , Klaus Kümmerer (Coauthor)
    →

    Activity: Conference Presentations › Research

View all activities

Press / Media

  1. Sustainable Chemistry and Chemical Leasing
    1 Media contribution

    Press/Media: Press/Media

  2. Lüneburger Forscher setzen ein Zeichen
    1 time cited

    Press/Media: Press/Media

  3. Deutsche Forscher entwickeln Alternativen zu Antibiotika
    Interviewed once

    Press/Media: Press/Media

  4. Lüneburger Uni sucht Pharmafirma für umweltverträgliches Antibiotikum
    1 time cited

    Press/Media: Press/Media

  5. Umweltverträgliches Antibiotikum: Uni sucht Pharmafirma
    Interviewed once

    Press/Media: Press/Media

View all press/media coverage

Prizes

  1. Verdienstkreuz am Bande des Verdienstordens der Bundesrepublik Deutschland
    Klaus Kümmerer (Recipient) ,

    Prize: external Prizes, scholarships, distinctions, appointments › Transfer

  2. Wöhler Preis der Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker für nachhaltige Chemie
    Klaus Kümmerer (Recipient) ,

    Prize: external Prizes, scholarships, distinctions, appointments › Transfer

  3. Deutschland - Land der Ideen
    Klaus Kümmerer (Recipient) ,

    Prize: external Prizes, scholarships, distinctions, appointments › Research

  4. Wasserressourcenpreis (Water Ressources Award)
    Klaus Kümmerer (Recipient) ,

    Prize: external Prizes, scholarships, distinctions, appointments › Research

  5. 3rd Prize Best Poster Award
    Klaus Kümmerer (Recipient) ,

    Prize: external Prizes, scholarships, distinctions, appointments › Research

View all prizes

Courses

Finite resources
Klaus Kümmerer, Oliver Olsson, Marco Reich
Next appointment:
Tuesday, 2026-05-12 at 10:15
Room: C 14.001 Seminarraum
Sustainable Chemistry Research Colloquium
Klaus Kümmerer, Oliver Olsson
⌄
In dem Seminar soll die aktuelle Forschungsarbeit der Doktorandinnen und Doktoranden reflektiert und diskutiert werden.
Next appointment:
Wednesday, 2026-05-13 at 09:15
Room: intern