The Palestinian scientist Omar Yaghi wins the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

Omar Yaghi Wins 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for Pioneering Work on Metal-Organic Frameworks

STOCKHOLM — The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences today awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry to Professor Omar M. Yaghi, a Palestinian-American scientist, along with Susumu Kitagawa of Japan and Richard Robson of Australia. The three were honored for their groundbreaking research on metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) — highly porous materials with revolutionary potential in clean energy, water harvesting, and environmental sustainability.

According to the Nobel Committee, the laureates’ discoveries “opened the door to a new class of crystalline materials that can trap, store, and separate molecules with unprecedented precision.” Their work, spanning more than three decades, has reshaped modern materials chemistry and created new pathways to tackle global challenges such as carbon capture, clean water access, and renewable fuel storage.

A Revolution in Materials Science

MOFs are networks made of metal ions linked by organic molecules, forming structures that are incredibly porous yet remarkably stable. In practical terms, these materials can absorb and release gases and liquids in ways that were once thought impossible.

One Nobel Committee member likened MOFs to “Hermione’s handbag” from the Harry Potter stories — small on the outside but vast within. A single gram of MOF can have a surface area equal to a football field, giving it immense capacity for storing gases or filtering pollutants.

Applications for MOFs are already under development worldwide, from devices that pull drinking water from desert air to systems that capture carbon dioxide directly from factories and the atmosphere.

From Refugee Roots to Global Recognition

Omar Mwannes Yaghi was born in 1965 in Amman, Jordan, to a Palestinian refugee family originally from Ijzim, near Haifa. Despite humble beginnings, he showed early talent in science and a deep curiosity about the natural world. After moving to the United States, Yaghi studied at the State University of New York at Albany, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in chemistry, and later obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign.

Over the years, Yaghi has held professorships at Arizona State University, the University of Michigan, UCLA, and currently at the University of California, Berkeley, where he is the James & Neeltje Tretter Chair Professor of Chemistry. He is also a senior scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the founding director of the Berkeley Global Science Institute.

Prior to his Nobel win, Yaghi received numerous international honors, including the Wolf Prize in Chemistry (2018) and the Tang Prize in Sustainable Development (2024).

Transforming Science and Society

In his early work, Yaghi coined the term “reticular chemistry” to describe the deliberate design and assembly of crystalline frameworks with atomic precision — a concept that has transformed the field of materials science.

Speaking after the announcement, Yaghi said he was “deeply honored and humbled” by the recognition, adding that the award “celebrates the power of science to unite humanity in solving our greatest challenges.” He also highlighted his team’s ongoing efforts to use MOFs to address water scarcity, particularly in arid regions.

“Our goal has always been to make science serve humanity,” Yaghi said in a statement released by UC Berkeley. “From air and sunlight, we can make clean water — that’s the promise of chemistry.”

Global Celebration

News of Yaghi’s Nobel Prize has sparked widespread celebration in the Middle East and beyond. Palestinian officials, academics, and students have hailed his achievement as a source of immense pride and inspiration.

“This is not only a victory for science but a symbol of hope for every young Palestinian who dreams of contributing to humanity,” said one message shared by Birzeit University in the West Bank.

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry carries a gold medal and a cash award of 11 million Swedish kronor (about $1 million USD). The formal ceremony will take place in Stockholm on December 10, marking the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death.