A golden future for green chemistry

Interest continues unabated in catalysis by gold. It is now recognised that gold has unique properties as a catalyst for many reactions with pre-eminence established now in both heterogeneous and homogeneous processes. Indeed, gold catalysts can carry out processes for which no other catalyst has yet been identified. This paper sets out the general content of a keynote lecture delivered at the third world congress on gold in Limerick in 2006. In particular, aspects of the progress achieved since the second world congress, held in Vancouver in 2003, will be addressed. This is not an exhaustive statement on the progress achieved or the state of the field, since time did not permit such an exposition, and hence this is a personal perspective on gold catalysis and its potential impact on green chemistry.