Vanderlan Bolzani

Vanderlan da Silva Bolzani (born November 19, 1949) is a Brazilian chemist at the São Paulo State University. She has previously served as president of the Brazilian Chemical Society and was awarded the 2011 American Chemical Society – International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry Distinguished Women in Science Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Award.

Early life and education Bolzani was born in Santa Rita and raised in João Pessoa, Paraíba. Her grandmother was indigenous, and Bolzani recalls playing with natural pigments from saffron in her grandmother's farm. Her parents were of Portuguese and Tabajara heritage. As a child she studied the fishing colony on Formosa beach, and became interested in the natural world. During her undergraduate studies she became interested in organic and analytical chemistry. She had originally planned to work with Paulo de Carvalho, but he died suddenly of a heart attack. She has studied the biosynthesis of piperidine alkaloids. She has since studied phytochemistry and endophytic fungi.

Academic service She has served as Deputy Director of the São Paulo State University Innovation Agency from 2009. In 2012 Bolzani joined the advisory board of the L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Awards.

Awards and honours Her awards and honours include;

2008 Elected President of the Brazilian Chemical Society 2010 Elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry 2011 Brazilian Chemical Society Simão Mathias Medal 2011 American Chemical Society Distinguished Women in Science Chemistry and Chemical Engineering 2013 Elected to The World Academy of Science 2015 Vice President of the Sociedade Brasileira para o Progresso da Ciência 2015 Brazilian Chemical Society Kurt Politzer Technological Innovation Award

In 2019 it was announced that the Brazilian Chemical Society would create a Vanderlan da Silva Bolzani Prize for women scientists.

Personal life Bolzani was married to the sociologist Jorge Bolzani, who she met during graduate school in 1977. Together they had two children. Jorge Bolzani died in 2011.