Paul Josef Crutzen: Ingeniousness and innocence.

On January 28, 2021, the world lost a scholar, who won a Nobel Prize, who shaped our thinking about planet Earth, and whose fight for the protection of the global environment will be remembered forever. Paul Josef Crutzen was born in Amsterdam in 1933 and embarked on a cosmopolitan journey in 1957, when he left The Netherlands for Sweden. Looking back at that journey, we can state that he arrived at a triad of accomplishments that few intellectuals obtain: the disruptive advancement of science, the inspiring communication of science, and the responsible operationalization of science. Paul J. Crutzen. Image credit: Carsten Costard Photography. Paul J. Crutzen at work. Image credit: Archives of the Max Planck Society. Paul was trained as a civil engineer for the construction sector, which he abandoned for becoming a computer programmer at the Meteorology Institute of Stockholm University (MISU). The university housed the world’s fastest computers at that time, and the institute, founded by the great Gustav Rossby, was at the forefront of atmospheric research. When Paul arrived, MISU was headed by another giant of meteorology, Bert Bolin, who later became the chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Paul had always longed for an academic career due to his interest and talent in mathematics and physics, yet was denied access to university education in The Netherlands by an unfortunate episode of illness. So, while helping develop numerical weather forecasting models for various projects, he also took lecture courses at Stockholm University, was graduated there, and eventually received a doctorate in meteorology in 1968. … [↵][1]1Email: emdir{at}pik-potsdam.de. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1