"What fascinates me about chemistry is that it has such a tremendous scope: it contributes significantly to the health sciences and has given birth to all man-made materials – fuels, pharmaceuticals, plastics, dyes, textiles". Modern organic chemistry owes a great debt to George A. Olah, born and raised in Hungary between the two wars and today lauded by Who’s Who as one of fifty living Americans who exemplify leadership, inspiration and achievement in their fields. Famous for his scientific intuition and the originality of his theoretical approach, Olah considers chemistry to be a creative enterprise on a par with art. His work is anything but abstract: it has paved the way for cleaner-burning gasoline, improved oil-refining techniques, innovative plastics and many new drugs. Olah is also a passionate advocate of the central role of applied research in tackling the global problems of the coming century, first and foremost the energy needs of a constantly increasing population, which poses a serious threat to the environmental balance of the planet.