Bringing up real inspiration

The search for innovative solutions is embedded in Solvay’s DNA. This spirit of innovation dates back to 1863, when Ernest Solvay made a major technological breakthrough: the synthesis of soda ash (sodium carbonate). In the years following, his passion for science only grew and he was inspired to support his fellow pioneers. Since 1911, he held conferences bringing together the world’s most distinguished physicists and chemists to discuss scientific issues -- among them Albert Einstein, Marie Curie, Niels Bohr and 17 other Nobel Prize laureates. Today, Solvay continues this tradition of knowledge exchange with the brightest minds of our time.