Team:Korea U Seoul/Engagement

Engagement

Communicating with General Public

Korea U Seoul Team executed project and explained to the many listeners about bio-safety that follows synthetic biology. Also, we introduced our experimental project to communicate with the society and discuss about the issues to our listeners. This activity was executed based on general people by gradually expanding from people that have special subject of study as background. This activity was executed through discussion about what our project is, what synthetic biology is, and what bio-safety is. However, when we executed the activity on general people, we encountered questions that were not able to be answered with the existing methods. The people did not ask questions about what synthetic biology is or what the project is but rather asked questions about why this experiment is important and why the subjects have to execute this experiment. This kind of question was difficult to answer with our way of activity and a new approach method was required.

The activity based on general people had to be answered about the social need for our project. By actually communicating with the people, we were able to consider the social meanings and continuously ask questions and answer the questions about communication.

Straegy1- Exposure to Global Warming

As a result of analyzing several questions acquired from the meeting process with the general people, the questions reached the conclusion to be occurring due to the lack of understanding and lack of information about global warming, which becomes the background of the project. To resolve this, we made education data on global warming so that people can understand easily, and communication was executed again with the people.

The information we organized is as follows.

Currently, the whole world is experiencing climate change. Climate change is the process where the Earth’s climate changes due to natural and artificial influence. We call this global warming and cooling. Currently, the Earth is experiencing global warming. Global warming occurred due to the result of various activities of humanity. After the industrial revolution, there has been increase of using fossil fuel such as coal and petroleum due to the consumption of energy that has been increasing rapidly. Thus, carbon dioxide that is combusted from the fossil fuel has been rapidly increasing as well. Due to this situation carbon dioxide concentration increased by 36%. The change of the atmospheric components deepened greenhouse effect, which worsened the global warming.

Figure 1. Global Mean Temperature (1).

With this influence, the temperature of the Earth has increased by 0.74℃ over the last 100 years (1906-2005). Global warming is also being accelerated. To block global warming, it is important to lower the carbon dioxide concentration. Of course, to reduce the carbon dioxide concentration of the atmosphere, the use of fossil fuel has to be reduced. However, fossil fuel takes up 80% of the energy that the mankind uses. To reduce the use of the fossil fuel, alternative energy must be proposed and started. Alternative energy is the comprehensive word that is used for energy resource to replace the use of fossil fuel, and it is the energy that gives little influence to the environment. We considered microorganism to make electrical energy by dispersing the weather with fuel.

Earth surface Temperature change from NASA

For the explanation about global warming and to resolve this, we were able to become close to the people by explaining this project. Along with the issues discussed through this process, we were able to discuss about the goal of the experimental project, current experimental process, and the materialization in reality

However, we faced a new limitation. Continuous and active interest and participation are essential for the communication process to discuss about the social application and potential risk of the project. However, there was difficulty in many participants participating with interest about this issue, and there was not enough will to communicate. To solve this kind of problem, we executed interviews with few participants.

Interview

“While participating in this program, I was able to encounter new information about global warming and alternative energy. I realized the seriousness of global warming and realized that this issue was an overall issue of Earth. Global warming is very serious and careful issue, and I found out that the international society and government are doing the best for resolution. I agreed and understood to this issue, but it is difficult to think of this as individual problem.”

“This is an issue that should be resolved by the government and international society and not individuals.”

“The content was fresh and easy to understand. However, I cannot agree to the reason this issue is explained to us.”

“The presentation and the discussion were very interesting. However, it is difficult for a member of the society with a family and job to regularly participate in this kind of program.”

“In preparation for global warming around the world, many measures are being provided. However, there is no direct damage due to global warming in Korea. There are actually other issues to resolve before global warming.”

Through this, we found out that many participants were not able to feel the urgency of resolving the issue because our project was not related to the participants’ lives.

Straegy2- Global Warming Risk Assessment

A new approach method was needed to continuously communicate with the people. Until now, it was difficult to communicate due to the lack of knowledge of people. On the other hand, the absence of the interest of the people was the cause for this case. There was a need to investigate more to find fundamental resolution and understanding about the situation of problem.

To resolve this, research was executed on the knowledge of people about the environmental problem and communication method with the society, and little information were simply organized.

Awareness Investigation of People on Global Warming

Korea’s Ministry of Environment investigated the environmental issues based on Koreans in 2007 (2). In this investigation, most of the Koreans (97%) responded to know about the problem on climate change. However, the respond of knowing well was only 9.7% of all participants. In addition, in the survey of what the government must preferentially improve among environmental problems, household waste was 26.3% while global warming and climate change was 13.5%, which were much lower responses. This shows that many people do not regard global warming as an urgent problem to solve.

Scientific knowledge and public attitude

Although the severity of global warming was raised to the public through several educational data, many people who participated did not show much attention to the problem. More about such public attitude was soon revealed through other research.

The general public’s concern over global warming is not proportional toward acquired scientific proof (3).

That is, no matter how certain and verified scientific evidence we propose, it is difficult to change the general fundamental public attitude. To evoke continuous public attention and engage in such problem solving, we had to change the method of communication. A clue to such problem solving could be obtained through Leiserowitz’s research in 2007.

Leiserowitz’s research

Leiserowitz conducted a nationwide research on Americans’ awareness toward global warming (4). The research revealed that most respondents perceived melting glaciers, drought, risks due to disease, and other influences by climate were influences on “people, places, or unhuman nature far from myself in terms of both geography and time.”

That is, global warming is not a phenomenon that has a striking influence on the respondents, their family, and the local community. So far, the educational data on global warming has been made using the cases of Arctic that is far from general people’s everyday life, global change (ex. average height of sea level), and a situation of a not well-known country. As a result, it has been difficult for many people to connect their daily life easily to the problem of global warming through education.

To solve this problem, we decided to research the influence of global warming on each community for people to connect their life and global warming and continue communication based on this.

Straegy3 - Reconnecting Global Warming to Local Society

The public perceives global warming as a problem unrelated to their life. To solve this, we investigated the changes in the local community of residents who are participating in the communication program. By providing such information, we believed that local residents will be able to realize that global warming is changing their life and participate in solving this problem.

The solution we have chosen to communicate with the general public is a local community. Focusing on Seongbuk-gu where Korea University is located, we surveyed the community and global warming.

The collected information is briefly organized as below.

: We researched the influence of global warming on Seongbuk-gu based on various records and the information provided by national institutions.

To accurately research how global warming influenced Seongbuk-gu, we investigated the average temperature change and average carbon dioxide concentration of Seongbuk-gu.

The temperature change of Seongbuk-gu

In Korea, temperature is measured in a total of 6 places and one of them is Seoul, where Seongbuk-gu is located. To examine the temperature change of Seongbuk-gu, we examined the temperature change of Seoul. Firstly, the temperature of Korea increased by 1.7℃ on average. The temperature change of Seongbuk-gu(1912-2009), which was higher than average earth temperature increase (0.74±0.03℃). Especially, Especially, the annual average temperature of Seoul increased by 2.4℃ for the past 100 years (1908-2007).

Figure 2. Annual average maximum and minimum temperature change for 100 years in Seoul (1908-2007)

Change of Seongbuk-gu’s carbon dioxide concentration

We also decided to examine the change of carbon dioxide concentration in Seoul where Seongbuk-gu is located, but there was no research data on the change of carbon dioxide concentration in Seoul or Seongbuk-gu. Instead, we could identify the carbon dioxide concentration measured in Anmyeon-do Island, which represents the standard concentration of entire carbon dioxide in Korea.

Korea’s carbon dioxide concentration has continuously increased since 1999 and in 2015, the average carbon dioxide concentration was 404.8ppm. This is higher than the carbon dioxide concentration of the entire earth of 400.83ppm in 2015.

Figure 3. Carbon dioxide concentration change in Korea (5)

Temperature change in Seoul over 30 years: April 5th

To closely research climate change of Seoul where Seongbuk-gu is located, we examined temperature change of Seoul on April 5th for the past 30 years. The average temperature of Seoul for the past 30 years was 8℃, and the average temperature of April 5th for recent 30 years 11℃, an increase of 3℃ from the past.

Figure 4. Average temperature of Seoul between March 5th and April 5th (Comparison of average temperatures in 1931 - 1960 and 1979 – 2009) (5)

Through the above data, we can learn Seongbuk-gu is facing climate change due to global warming. The temperature of Seoul where Seongbuk-gu is rising much faster, and Korea’s carbon dioxide concentration is much higher than that of the entire earth. This information shows that Seongbuk-gu is very closely related with the influence of global warming at the present.

Limitations

By investigating global warming faced by Seongbuk-gu, we could learn that there is significant lack of community-basis research or observations in Korea. To solve this, active researches must be made by local governments such as Seongbuk-gu Office.

Currently, Seongbuk-gu Office is carrying out various programs to raise awareness of global warming, is providing educational information to reduce carbon dioxide emission, and is supporting lectures. However, it is suffering from low participation rate and little consciousness. Such problem can be solved if Seongbuk-gu Office cooperates with research institutions or universities that will research regional climate change. Through this, the statistical data of community one lives in can be generated instead of educational data using global data, and such education can also lead to more convincing awareness campaign and higher participation rate of local residents.

We resumed our activities using the research data on the influence of global warming on Seongbuk-gu. We continuously carried out education and various events for Korea University students and the residents of Seongbuk-gu.

Here, we will cover the events held in collaboration with Korea University Green Campus and Korea U Seoul Team.

We held events only for Korea University students and Seongbuk-gu residents. We promoted our events through SNS as well as uploaded data on global warming daily life guidelines to prevent global warming on SNS. The program held during Korea University’s fesetival allows not only Korea University students but also local community residents to directly participate, so many more people could be involved in our activity than usual. For many participants, Korea U Seoul Team informed of the urgency of solving the global warming issue and delivered education on the influence of global warming on Seongbuk-gu.

“I was somewhat aware of global warming but didn’t know Korea was receiving such big influence. When I think about it, I feel a huge difference in Seoul’s weather between now and my childhood.”

“It is surprising and scary to know about the information of climate change in the region I live in through research data. So far I have thought that global warming was pertaining only to Polar Regions or foreign countries.”

“I learned that our community has gone through many changes within a short period due to global warming and that the influence of global warming has been greater than other regions on the earth. I feel more sense of responsibility on this problem as an adult living this period. A quick measure must be taken for the community where our children will grow.”

Many participants showed more attention toward global warming and the community problem through the above data and more willingness to study in more depth about such problems. Next, we introduced our experiment project to them and had a wider and deeper discussion on where we should head toward by discussing with many participants the necessity of our project to solve global warming. Many people especially empathized with the social necessity of our project more than our initial activity, and we discussed about social efforts and researchers’ efforts to realize this project together.

“Electricity production using bio fuel battery is very unique and interesting. We never knew that Hancheon, which we used as a food ingredient, would be used in this way.”

“Electricity production through microorganisms. Of course we’ve heard enough explanation about future possibility but I think there are many limitations to be actually used in the local community. It is incomparable to what is proposed by the current experiment to meet the demand of electrical energy by the local community. It is doubtful whether the microorganisms can be managed well. Currently, more discussions should be arranged in this research and a more specific solution must be suggested”

Lastly, we taught many people participating in our research that community residents can prevent the global warming themselves through their own efforts in daily life.

Conclusion

There have been many limitations and obstacles until Korea U Seoul Team could have truthful communication with the public. We could solve it in a new way around the local community because it was due to the public’s lack of knowledge and absence of attention for communication. We carried out our events mainly in Seongbuk-gu, and could have a wider and deeper conversation with the actual community residents on global warming. Through this process, many people showed their deep concerns and attention toward the problem and exhibited a strong willingness to solve the problem through efforts they can make in their daily life.

We plan to continuously carry out our activities around Seongbuk-gu, communicate actively with each other, and discuss the potential risk of our research and its application in society. Also, Korea U Seoul Team seeks to cooperate with Seongbuk-gu Office on its information and achievement so far to raise awareness of this problem among many more Seongbuk-gu Office residents and solve it together.

Lastly, there is serious lack of global warming research in each community due to the absence of community-based research institutions. To solve this problem, we will strive to establish a community research institution around Korea University. Through this we will continuously observe the climate change of Seongbuk-gu, which will help foster sincere communication with community residents.

References

Education

In the means of contributing to the popularization of synthetic biology, our team had a mentoring session for high school students who are interested and considering biology as their future major. Our main role was to inform them about the general concept of synthetic biology, and organize a discussion on ethical issues related to objectives and lab activities.

Despite the fact that high school years are important in investigating and deciding the first step of one’s own course and career, many students lack opportunity of having interest-specific experience which will answer the exact question they have in mind. Therefore, college students which have action with subjectivity, like us, sharing trials and errors we have gone through and introducing what we are experiencing right now will help younger students to develop their own path.

Especially the Hansung Science High School, where the mentoring session was held, has their own well-made extra-curriculum activities for course investigation.

Thus, it was a meaningful activity which was both a good opportunity for us to know how Korean students are carving their academic life out, and also for mentees to share what we mentor were, and are experiencing on the academic field.

The mentoring session was executed in Hansung Science High School, Seoul. We have contacted with about 10 students in BioR&T, which is a club of students who are willing to major in life science or biotechnology in college. BioR&T were doing activities to investigate the general field of biology before they decide further specific area of interest. Specifically, they study papers which provides the basic concept of experiments they learn in regular classes, and they also have weekly seminar where students bring one paper of interest each and introduce in front of other club members. As it happens, synthetic biology was an unfamiliar field for them, so this mentoring was an experience to promote their interest in synthetic biology.

Mentoring was organized with three big parts. First, we introduced the general concept along the brief history of synthetic biology. Second part was about the iGEM and iGEM projects including Korea_U_Seoul’s recent activities. Lastly, after the introducing session, we had a discussion session including Q&A with some snacks provided.

In the sense of introducing what synthetic biology is, we explained how the term synthetic biology was coined, and what it means to distinguish synthetic biology from pre-existing genetic engineering. Also, we described synthetic biology with two major perspectives: design and engineering concept. Most of our mentees have already took general biology in their regular classes, and some of them have actually experienced the cloning process during the lab activities, so we could give a detailed account relating it to their experiences. Furthermore, we applied two representative researching methods, top down approach and bottom up approach, to give an insight of viewing an organism as a biological machine, which is one of the key point of synthetic biology.

Next, we informed the method of how we can actually synthesize genetic materials using the concept of ‘biobrick’. Many of students had experience on using restriction enzymes, but there were only few who understands the precise principles, so proposing many different approaches was meaningful.

After talking about the synthetic biology, session proceeded to the introduction of iGEM. We informed them about the high school track, and recommended the participation to those who showed the interest. We also selected some of other team’s impressive former projects we have read about and had a discussion on it. At last, Korea_U_Seoul’s former annual projects starting from 2009 was introduced.

After the whole session, time for Q&A was provided. There were diverse series of questions, such as the conceptual inquiry on the difference between genetic engineering and synthetic biology, or personal experiences related to ‘the reason why we started to participate in iGEM’ or ‘what are the future career plans’. We also talked about recent trend of research that might be interestingly approached by BioR&T students soon in the future when they go to college and even further degrees. It was so glad that the whole session was about interactive communication between mentors and mentees, not only the one sided communication of us giving a presentation.

Conclusion

By holding a mentoring session, Korea_U_Seoul team could conclude many things based on newly gained insights.

First of all, in the process of preparing and presenting about synthetic biology, we could know how much amazing this field is, and how much unknown it is compared to that.

Secondly, we thought that there need more opportunities to inform and introduce synthetic biology to students whom do not know how, and where to start. There are certain limitations in learning from reading textbooks and thesis, so college students who are actually experiencing the research environment and studying ahead can help high school students investigating their field of interest. Our teams goal for upcoming 2017 project is to construct the platform that systematically supports the periodic mentoring programs, connecting college and high school students in demand.

Lastly, during the interaction with young future scientists who have enthusiasm in biology, we ourselves could also think about what kind of person the scientist is, and in what attitude should we study and research on our field of interest.

• Communicating with General Public
  • Straegy1- Exposure to Global Warming
  • Straegy2- Global Warming Risk Assessment
  • Straegy3 - Reconnecting Global Warming to Local Society
  • Conclusion
  • References
• Education
  • Conclusion

Korea_U_Seoul