Back to Top

Education

Placeholder image Placeholder image Placeholder image Placeholder image Placeholder image
We focused on the education of the next generations in order to get them excited about synthetic biology and biotechnology and to open their minds to this topic. In food production and agriculture in particular, there is a rejection of biotechnology and genetic engineering in Germany and also regionally here in Kaiserslautern. From discussions with regional farmers, it quickly became clear why little genetic engineering and biotechnology is used in this area in Germany. Contrary to public assumptions, farmers are trained in the latest technologies and the benefits of biotechnology and are also positive about the genetic modification of crops. The real problem in this industry is the public, which rejects the cultivation and use of genetically modified crops and thus would not buy products made from these very crops. The farmers' actions are then understandable: after all, why should something be grown and produced that finds no buyers.
Most people cannot even justify this described rejection of genetic engineering, which crystallized for us where we have to start: We have to bring the population into contact with this topic from an early age and provide honest and realistic information!
Because especially the young and coming generations are not yet biased and malleable concerning this topic. We have to pave the way for the application of biotechnology in the future, and that is exactly what we wanted to accomplish with the most diverse methods.
As a first method of educating the future generation, we held lectures for the students in both the middle school and the high school of the regionally based schools. In these lectures, we educated them about the use of biotechnology, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of genetic engineering. With younger students we conducted demonstrative experiments, while with the students from the upper school we held discussions about water pollution and genetic engineering in agriculture.
"We finally have to do something about pollution, animals and nature are suffering. Where else is this going to lead?" said students from the MSS12 of the Albert Schweitzer High School in Kaiserslautern. Many such statements were made during the discussion and we can only agree with the students. Together we also considered what each individual could do for the environment. "Doing without plastic and driving less, very simple!" was a very clear answer. We were also able to have a lively discussion with the students of the MSS12 of the Albert Schweitzer High School on the topic of genetic engineering in agriculture. "We have to do something to educate people more about the topic of genetic engineering and biotechnology. Because in the near future, we will all be dependent on genetically modified plants." was one student's statement. Genetic engineering and biotechnology are omnipresent, which is why we also talked to the students about their fears and risks and were able to allay their fears. "In times of climate change, we have to rely on new methods such as biotechnology," said the students, hitting the nail on the head. However, our project with the "miracle algae", as it was called, and further ideas on how biotechnology could improve our existence, also met with much approval and enthusiasm among the students during the discussion.
In addition to the lectures, we conducted a survey with all the students to find out how much biotechnology is taught in schools. The results were a bit shocking for us, as the students do not feel very well educated in this topic and genetic engineering is also not covered much or at all in class.
All the more reason for us to continue with our project and educate students of all kinds. In addition to normal school visits, we also worked together with the Ada Lovelace Project to inspire schoolgirls aged 10-12 years for biology. We also trained the mentors of the Ada Lovelace Project so that they will be able to conduct biological experiments with the students in the future. For this purpose, we handed over the relevant documents and solutions to the mentors and discussed the student experiments with them.

In order to inspire students for biotechnology not only through lectures and school experiments, we offered interested students a full-day practical training in our laboratory at the university, which we called "iGEM Day". On this day, the participants were not only allowed to get to know the laboratory, but also the methods we use on a daily basis. We focused on "Modular Cloning", which we have used a lot in our CYPurify project. The students were allowed to pipette their own MoClo reactions with parts provided by us and to perform the following steps, for example an E. coli transformation, the preparation of an overnight culture and a plasmid isolation, which were prepared by us. We wanted to show the participants here once a current, much used and very new method of cloning in detail, to go with the flow and show them that not only the methods known from school are used in the laboratory. After all, as budding scientists, we want to keep up with the times and communicate this to the people around us.

At the same time, we carried out a four-day internship with two exchange students from France, during which they accompanied us in the laboratory and were allowed to carry out practical work themselves. Here, the focus was on working in biotechnology and the theory behind the individual methods as well as the relationship of the applied methods to our project.
It was important for us to show the students not only cool experiments, but also normal everyday laboratory life. This way we can make sure that they know about the real circumstances and can develop their interests with all this information. We would like to get as many students as possible excited about biology and all sides of it, but we also have to stay with reality so that everyone can choose their later vocation that suits them.

Also at the info market of the Rhineland-Palatinate Technical University we were able to inform local pupils and students about the biology study, but also the contents of it. We also wanted to turn the focus of this project back to biotechnology and synthetic biology by telling the people on site about our experiences, but also the advantages and disadvantages of this branch of research.

But we didn't just want to introduce synthetic biology to secondary school students; we also wanted the youngest ones to discover the world of biology. So we decided to offer workshops and booths at MINT fairs. Here, children from the age of 6 could do experiments designed by us on the topic of biology and "our local waters". There was a lot of microscopy and also talking about water pollution and what could be done about it. Likewise, we educated the children about the consequences of consuming polluted water. "But how can we make sure that the water we use stays clean?" some children asked. In response, we were able to get them very excited about our project idea and lay a foundation for environmental protection. It was very important for us not only to familiarize students of the higher classes with biology and biotechnology, we wanted to reach as many people as possible and take away their fear of these topics.

To achieve our goal and truly educate the general population on the topic of genetic engineering and biotechnology, we designed Instagram posts that educate on the basics of biotechnology as well as on some much-used methods in the lab.



In addition, in cooperation with Carl Roth, we were also able to educate people on the topic of genetic engineering and environmental pollution via their Instagram channel, thus increasing the amount of people we reach.

Our next method used was to conduct expert interviews, which we made available to the public. Here we sought out many different experts in their fields to educate about our organism used, Chlamydomonas rheinhardtii, biotechnology, cytochrome P450 enzymes, and many other topics. Hereby, we wanted to give people an introduction to our project, but also to the topic of synthetic biology itself. And in order to be able to counter any skepticism that people might have, we wanted to refer to living reputable sources who are considered experts in their fields.

Most recently, we tackled the design of a children's book that, in its playful form, tackles the issue of environmental pollution and how to overcome it with the help of biotechnology. The story of the book and its characters was designed by our team members themselves. However, a children's book without illustrations would be very dry and not very appealing to children. Therefore, pictures of the children's book were illustrated in cooperation with artists and artistically talented students. We gave the illustrators a free hand with the style of the pictures, which is why the individual illustrations differ, which for us should also reflect the diversity of biotechnology in terms of its applications and possibilities. At the moment, some illustrations are still in progress, but we would like to print the book after iGEM and present it in kindergartens and elementary schools and distribute it for free.

However, we did not only want to provide learning material for the population, we also wanted to support other iGEM teams in their future training. For this purpose, we conducted surveys in cooperation with the iGEM team Stuttgart, in which, among other things, the understanding of scientific terms was tested. Through this survey we were able to determine what level of language needs to be used in order for the general population to understand scientific texts and methods. For this purpose, we wrote a dictionary for other iGEM teams that provides a simple translation option for exactly these words that are too complicated for the general public. Due to its scope, this can also be extended further and further and is not yet completed even at the current time. It is our vision that in the future other iGEM teams will join this project and add more words. We think that all iGEM teams worldwide should support each other and need to work together especially in the field of education to further educate the public about biotechnology and genetic engineering.

Here you can read the special dictionary
WaveyFooter