Prof. Ya-Huei (Cathy) Chin is Professor and Canada Research Chair (Tier II) in Advanced Catalysis for Sustainable Chemistry at the University of Toronto. She joined the University in 2011, after receiving her Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. Before then, she was a research engineer (2000-2002) and then senior research scientist (2002-2005) at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), one of the ten National Research Laboratories for the U.S. Department of Energy. Her recent research focuses on establishing mechanistic linkages between catalytic events and different reaction microenvironments for the sustainable synthesis of fuels and chemicals. In particular, she is interested in the dynamics of catalyst surfaces and catalytic pathways at vapor–solid and liquid–solid interfaces, as well as in bridging thermocatalysis and electrocatalysis.

She serves as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Catalysis and as an advisory board member for several leading journals in the field, including Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, Reaction Chemistry and Engineering, Chem Catalysis, and the Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering. Within the ACS Catalysis Division, she has served as a Member-at-Large and as an Alternate Councilor and Councilor, and has contributed to the organization of the Division's Educational Seminar Series.

Her service to the catalysis community extends nationally and internationally. For the Canadian Catalysis Society, she has served as President, Vice-President, and Treasurer. She currently serves as Director-at-Large of the North American Catalysis Society and the Humboldt Association of Canada, and as Secretary of the International Association of Catalysis Societies (IACS). She is also Co-Chair of the 30th North American Catalysis Society Meeting (2027).

Across these roles, her goal is to foster a diverse, strong, and vibrant catalysis community—one that connects researchers across disciplines and generations, without borders, in the shared pursuit of science. When she is not choreographing molecular dances, breaking bonds, or crossing transition states, she is dancing ballet herself.

It is our great pleasure to welcome Prof. Cathy Chin to PodCAT!