Richard K. Haynes B.Sc. Hons (1^st Class); PhD (organic chemistry) received his Ph.D. degree from the University of Western Australia, and conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Karlsruhe, Germany, and then at Imperial College, London. After academic appointments in the Chemistry Department at Monash University, Melbourne, and in the Department of Organic Chemistry at the  University of Sydney, Prof. Haynes moved to the Chemistry Department at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) in 1993.