Book excerpt: Extensive experimentation and high failure rates are a well-recognised downside to the drug discovery process, with the resultant high levels of inefficiency and waste producing a negative environmental impact. Sustainable and Green Approaches in Medicinal Chemistry reveals how medicinal and green chemistry can work together to directly address this issue. After providing essential context to the growth of green chemistry in relation to drug discovery in Part 1, the book goes on to identify a broad range of practical methods and synthesis techniques in Part 2. Part 3 reveals how medicinal chemistry techniques can be used to improve efficiency, mitigate failure and increase the environmental benignity of the entire drug discovery process, whilst Parts 4 and 5 discuss natural products and microwave-induced chemistry. Finally, the role of computers in drug discovery is explored in Part 6. - Identifies novel and cost effective green medicinal chemistry approaches for improved efficiency and sustainability - Reflects on techniques for a broad range of compounds and materials - Highlights sustainable and green chemistry pathways for molecular synthesis