Santa Cruz Mayor
We had the incredible opportunity to present TABI to Mayor Fred Keeley of Santa Cruz. Fred Keeley has been involved in politics since 1996. In this time, Keeley championed the passing of Proposition 12 in 2000 [1] and Proposition 40 in 2002 [2]. These two propositions allocated $3.28 billion for environmental protection, parkland, and valuable habitats.
We presented about the history of harmful algal blooms in Pinto Lake, and discussed the potential for M.aeruginosa blooms to become an even more significant problem across the world. Additionally, we gave Mayor Kelley a tour of our lab and walked him through all aspects of our research; from programming to wet lab and sequencing work. Mayor Keeley recounted his collaboration with scientists while drafting Propositions 12 and 40, shedding light on the crucial link between science and legislation.
After our discussion and tour, Mayor Keeley graciously offered to sponsor one of our teammates. Mayor Keeley also pledged to use his network to help us find sponsors for the remainder of our team.
UCSC Dean of Engineering
Our team had the privilege of presenting our work to the UCSC Baskin School of Engineering (BSoE) Deans. We hosted Alexander Wolf (BSoE Dean), Anne Criss (BSoE Assistant Dean), Jim Whitehead (BSoE Associate Dean), and Abigail Kaun (Executed Advisor to the Dean).
With this meeting, we aimed to inform the BSoE community about our ongoing research, shed light on harmful algal blooms (HABs), and highlight the significance of the projects they endorse. We guided the Deans through the various aspects of our project, including sequencing, programming, wet lab, and dry lab activities.
During our meeting with the Deans, we also gained insight into the support that the School of Engineering directly provides for iGEM teams at UCSC. The BSoE not only allocates both wet-lab and dry-lab spaces, but has also helped to fund TABI and past project projects through grants. Additionally, Anne Criss shared her past experiences helping to shape environmental protection legislation in Oregon and Washington DC. This conversation underscored the importance of science in crafting informed policies and laws.
Team Meet-Up
Our team orchestrated the “UCSC iGEM Meet-Up”. We wanted to foster collboration with other iGEM teams to exchange project ideas, work methods, and experiences. In anticipation of the event, we coordinated venue arrangements, food and gathered presenters for the meet-up. Additionally, designed promotional materials, including an introduction pamphlet for the attendees.
While the event experienced a modest turn out, it offered a unique opportunity. We hosted students from Washington High School and were able to tailor our presentations to their needs. Since they are a high school team, they have limited access to a wet lab space. We were able to give them an indepth tour of our lab and brainstorm with them how they would test their bioinformatics project in a wet lab setting.
The meet-up served as a platform for collaborate with another iGEM team and provided us with insight into the operations of another team.
CALeDNA
We joined CALeDNA to conduct an environmental survey of Pinto Lake. CALeDNA is a locally-based company that specializes in the collection of soil and water samples from various locations throughout California. These samples are subsequently subjected to environmental DNA sequencing in order to establish a comprehensive repository, effectively capturing the environmental characteristics at the time of their collection.
On a sunny Saturday, our team, in collaboration with CALeDNA volunteers, procured water and soil samples from Pinto Lake. Our morning consisted of an exploration of the lake’s surroundings, during which we collected samples, and documented the sampling locations and their environmental conditions.
This experience gave us an opportunity to learn about how soil and water samples are collected, as well as insight into how CALeDNA is using these samples to quantify biodiversity. Importantly, this experience allowed us insight into how the methods of sequencing that we use in our project are employed for different purposes. Furthermore, it introduced our team members to a field of DNA sequencing they could pursue after graduation.