In partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (ELC) has announced funding for a new research initiative in cosmetics innovation.
Led by MIT’s Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research principal investigator Dr. Ana Jaklenec in collaboration with project advisor Dr. Robert Langer, the initiative will focus on researching “the development of biodegradable materials for cosmetic applications and explore new solutions to combat the effects of visible light from the sun,” according to ELC’s press release.
Pioneering the future of sustainable beauty with MIT
“Fostering strategic collaborations with world-leading scientific and academic institutions has long been a critical approach to driving innovation at The Estée Lauder Companies and enables us to remain at the forefront of research,” said Carl Haney, Executive Vice President of Research, Product, and Innovation Officer at ELC in the release.
“We are proud to collaborate with exceptional scientists who are exploring new frontiers in sustainability and innovation,” said Haney, and ”Dr. Jaklenec’s research is demonstrating it’s possible to develop a new class of materials that can offer various transformative applications.”
As detailed by ELC, the core focus of Dr. Jaklenec’s research centers on testing the efficacy and applicability of a recently developed class of biodegradable materials in cosmetics product manufacturing and development. In addition to sustainability-focused innovations, Dr. Jaklenec and her team, which includes doctoral candidate Linzixuan (Rhoda) Zhang, will also investigate methods to mitigate skin damage from visible and blue light exposure.
By “leveraging cutting-edge emerging chemical technologies, this research will focus on developing dispersible, stable, and formulation-compatible materials to block visible light effectively and protect consumers from visible light-induced pigmentation and potential photodamage,” ELC confirmed.
“As scientists, we deeply value the opportunity to translate our work from the lab to the real world,” said Dr. Jaklenec in ELC’s release, and with support from ELC’s funding, the MIT team will “look forward to exploring the potential ways our research can lead to sustainable and innovative materials that drive impactful advancements in skin health.”
Building a greener future: ELC’s efforts in green chemistry
ELC has vested over a decade of effort and support into green chemistry innovation in the beauty industry and “has worked to embed the principles of green chemistry throughout our product formulation process” for over 15 years with “100% of existing and new in-house raw materials assessed using peer-reviewed methodology” as of October 2023, according to the company’s website.
The collaborative research with MIT reflects ELC’s commitment to furthering efforts supporting “scientific innovation in prestige beauty while helping advance sustainability,” the release concluded.
Other ELC sustainability initiatives include establishing a company Green Chemistry Scientific Advisory Board as “part of our overall commitment to rigorous scientific credentialing, which also encompasses publishing in peer-reviewed journals, partnering with universities, and filing for patents where appropriate,” according to ELC’s website.
