The seminar will outline the Walsh Group’s efforts in C–C and C–S bond forming reactions.  The Walsh lab has developed a series of Pd and Ni catalyzed deprotonative cross-coupling processes (DCCP) that enable the synthesis of a variety of small molecule building blocks for use in the pharmaceutical industry.  The second part of the seminar will outline the introduction of a novel class of organocatalysts, sulfenate anions, that facilitate the dehydrocoupling of benzylic halides (below) and the formation of alkynes.  The dehydrocoupling of benzylic chloromethyl groups to form polymers will also be introduced.