Melanie Sanford is an internationally renowned leader in the fields of catalysis, organic synthesis, and energy storage. She has won numerous awards, including the ACS Award in Pure Chemistry, a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, and the Blavatnik Prize. Sanford is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences and has made important contributions to the development and understanding of novel redox active organic and inorganic molecules for applications in redox flow batteries. Sanford is a Moses Gomberg Distinguished University Professor at the University of Michigan.