This blog is where we share stories, announcements, and insights from around the iGEM community.
All tagged Judging
Right now, the world is excitedly watching the Summer Olympics taking place in Paris. For some, the Olympics offer a glimpse of impressive athletes and teams who have committed to their sport to compete at the highest level. In October, there will be another Olympics (of sorts) in Paris, where the participants are no less impressive and no less committed – the iGEM 2024 Grand Jamboree – the World Expo of synthetic biology and the culminating event of the iGEM Competition.
When I first heard about iGEM in 2021, I was looking for a way to help mentor and communicate with younger scientists about their research. Though it was uncertain as to whether the Jamboree would be virtual or not because of COVID-19, I wanted to get involved. I applied and was accepted to serve as a judge.
As the iGEM Competition evolves each year, so does the way we do judging. For example, the last major changes occurred during the pandemic years and made it possible for all teams to participate whether they could access a laboratory or not. Now that pandemic restrictions have eased and teams are back in the lab, the Judging Committee has reviewed the judging criteria and the feedback we received, and have defined a few goals for the 2023 Competition.
I wasn’t supposed to be at the 2011 iGEM Jamboree at all. I was working for a funding agency in the US Department of Defense. My boss was invited to iGEM to see what the competition was about. I was pulled onto his trip at the last minute. After arriving in Boston, I was informed I would serve as a judge in my boss’s place. He didn’t stick around for the whole weekend. I am still a part of iGEM 11 years later.
The iGEM Competition, as the name implies, is a competition. Presenting your work to a panel of judges at the end of the season is an integral part of the iGEM experience. This year, judging for the iGEM Competition will take place live during the Grand Jamboree at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles. Here is what to expect for judging of the iGEM 2022 Competition, for both judges AND teams.
Upon logging into the Virtual Jamboree, I was pleased to see the spirit of collaboration, diversity, and inclusion come to life. The energy and enthusiasm of each team was contagious. Within hours, it was obvious that the teams that would emerge as leaders were those who embraced this interdisciplinary, supportive philosophy, allowing each member to contribute different perspectives and unique skill sets.
If we could choose one word to describe the iGEM 2020 Virtual Giant Jamboree, it’s resilience. In the eight months since COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization, we’ve seen incredibly resilient iGEM team members, instructors, judges, committee members, sponsors and community members emerge as role models and heroes. And their resilience shone throughout the ten days for Competition, Community, Contribution and Celebration at the iGEM 2020 Virtual Giant Jamboree.
Judges start learning about your project by reading your wiki. Then, when we’re filling out our judging ballots, we look over the wiki again to make sure we’ve remembered everything right. So what does this mean for how you tell your story?
At iGEM, it is important to give credit where credit is due. Indeed, integrity, honesty and respect are among the iGEM values that all teams are expected to uphold.
The 2020 iGEM Season is quite a bit different from previous years, and the Executive Judging Committee (EJC) has made some exciting changes to the medal criteria so that all iGEM teams can participate and achieve medals – with or without lab access – this year.
