A Professor of Environmental Chemistry, Nurudeen Oladoja, has called for repurpose of the nation’s science curriculum to include teaching and practice of Benign Chemistry in order to enable methodologies that would be deployed for a safer public health and sustainable environment, particularly in the area of safe ground water.
He made the call on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, while delivering the 39th Inaugural Lecture of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko. The lecture was titled, The Chemistry Beat: Harnessing Benign Reactions for Water Purification.
He described benign chemistry as, “Clean chemistry for sustainability which is generally known as ‘Green chemistry’. It is an emerging field of chemistry that deals with the design of chemical products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use and generation of hazardous substances, and where possible utilize renewable raw materials. It is concerned with the use of chemistry for improved environmental performance and primary pollution prevention instead of remediation.”
The Inaugural Lecturer stated that knowledge of clean chemistry would help reduce cases of various ailments including mottling of teeth, skeletal fluorosis, and crippling fluorosis, among others, caused by unsafe groundwater with high fluoride concentration.
According to him, “Different routes have been identified for fluoride ingestion for humans, but the ingestion through potable water has been estimated to be about sixty percent. Consequent upon the overdependence on groundwater as a drinking water resource in the developing world, and the negative impact of fluoride; strategic efforts are now focused on the development of simple and low-cost functional reactive materials that can effectively capture fluoride from the aqua stream.”
Prof. Oladoja, whose research and academic journey spans both national and global spaces, also posited that there is a need to reorientate researchers and practicing scientists on the need to focus on green approach to Chemistry for the benefits of nations and for the global sustainability agenda.
The Don also recommended special funding for research efforts that focused on benign chemistry to expand the scope and opportunities abounding in the application, as well as mass mobilization on the need for the use of existing technologies for water treatment.
He said, “Since Benign Chemistry is an emerging field of chemistry, a repurpose of our science curriculum at all levels of educational system is required to include the teaching and practice of Chemistry from the benign approach; there is a need to reorientate researchers and practicing scientists on the need to focus on green approach, not just for the benefits of the developing world but for the global sustainability agenda.”
Prof. Oladoja asserted that achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal 6.1, which seeks universal access to safe and affordable potable water, would remain a hard nut to crack without the adoption of benign chemistry.
He stated, “Although the focus of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6.1, established by the UN General Assembly in 2015, is to ensure unrestricted access to safe and low-cost potable water for all by the year 2030, the complexity of water and sanitation issues means they cannot be addressed in isolation. Given the central role of chemical sciences in all water and wastewater treatment processes, and their direct link to sanitation and human well-being, integrating benign chemistry is crucial for developing the appropriate technologies needed in under-resourced developing regions if SDG 6.1 is to be successfully realized.”
Speaking while presenting the Inaugural Lecturer, the Vice Chancellor and Chairman on the occasion, Prof. Olugbenga Ige; described the Inaugural Lecturer as an academic colossus who is well respected in environmental science circles, and a global authority in Environmental Chemistry whose pioneering contributions have elevated the stature of AAUA and resonated across the global scientific landscape.
The Vice Chancellor noted that the Lecturer has 117 scientific publications to his credit while his scholarship continues to shape discourse in his field. “Beyond the classroom and laboratory, Prof. Oladoja has served with distinction in key administrative and academic roles within and outside the university. His global influence is further underscored by prestigious appointments as a CAS-PIFI Visiting Professor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing (2019-2020), and at the Technical University of Munich, Germany (2013-2015), and at Universiti Sains Malaysia (2011).”
He added further, “His illustrious career is adorned with accolades such as the Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellowship, which he won four times; the Chinese Academy of Sciences Presidential Fellowship, and grants from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, and the Cambridge-Africa ALBORADA Research Fund.
“In 2024, his global standing was cemented when he was ranked among the top two percent of scientists worldwide by the Stanford-Elsevier World Scientist Rankings – an honour that speaks volumes about the laudable research and relevance of his work.”
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