From a refugee family to Nobel Laureate: Omar Yaghi’s story

Al JazeeraCenterEN 1 min read 100% complete January 19, 2026 at 07:47 PM

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short article 1 min

In 2026, Al Jazeera's "The Take" featured an interview with Dr. Omar Yaghi, the 2025 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry. Yaghi, a professor at UC Berkeley and founder of Atoco, won the prize for his development of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), materials with applications in carbon capture and hydrogen storage. Born to a Palestinian refugee family in Amman, Jordan, Yaghi discussed how his early life experiences, including limited access to fresh water, inspired his scientific pursuits. He invented systems that extract water from desert air. The episode explores Yaghi's journey from humble beginnings to groundbreaking scientific contributions aimed at addressing the climate crisis.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Al Jazeera 30% Atoco 30% Melanie Marich ×240% Malika Bilal ×240% Palestine 40% Chloe K. Li ×240% Amman 50% University of California, Berkeley 60% Omar Yaghi ×3100%

Keywords

nobel laureate 100% omar yaghi 90% refugee family 80% metal-organic frameworks 70% climate crisis 70% hydrogen storage 60% carbon capture 60% mofs 60% water from air 50% chemistry 40%