Team:Gaston Day/Human Practices
Human Practice
We strive to promote synthetic biology education within our community and awareness of our project. Over the summer, the Gaston Day iGEM team offered a full summer camp dedicated to iGEM and the biomedical and bioengineering fields to provide students with an understanding of our project and how genetically engineered organisms function. The camp was run by team coach Anne Byford and co-led by student leaders Lilith Tang and Lydia Goff. In addition to the camp, teachers from schools across North Carolina visited our lab space to understand how they can incorporate the methods we used into their classrooms.
Every year, Gaston Day School holds a Back to School Dinner and a Fall Fest. During the Back to School Dinner, our iGEM team set up three booths designed to educate new students, young children, and parents through hands-on activities. These activities were constructed to inspire an interest in synthetic biology and an awareness of the various implications of genetic engineering. For Fall Fest in October, a community event with wide participation from families and businesses, we will have a booth to present information about genetically engineered organisms, safety practices common to the industry, and our construct. Outside of our school, our iGEM team reached out to The Schiele Museum of Natural History & Planetarium and arranged both a hands-on activities day and a forum. The hands-on activities will be the same as those presented at the Back to School Dinner and will last for four hours. The plan is to not only encourage children’s interests in science but also to engage adults in conversations about genetic engineering. The forum is designed for high school students and adults who wish to informally discuss genetic engineering and its various implications both positive and negative. The goal that participants leave with a greater understanding and interest in synthetic biology.
