This blog is where we share stories, announcements, and insights from around the iGEM community.
iGEM Design League was launched in Latin America this year to kickstart the journeys of Latinos and Latinas in synthetic biology. This new competition is focused on the design element of the "design-build-test-learn" cycle that helps ideas to become reality, all while engaging local people in solving local problems through synthetic biology.
Last year, we introduced the Inclusivity Award to recognize excellence among iGEM teams working to create a more inclusive and representative scientific community. This special award honors teams that have made exceptional and thoughtful efforts to eliminate the barriers that prevent underrepresented groups from contributing to, participating in, or being represented by scientific research.
Breast Cancer Awareness month is honored every October in countries around the world to increase awareness, early detection, treatment, and palliative care. Last year, 2.3 million women were diagnosed with breast cancer and 685,000 women died from this disease.
It happens every year … and it always comes too soon … and you meant to finish earlier … and you wish you had more time … and you just now thought of a better way to show something … and you didn’t realize how many things could go wrong … and then …. it’s one minute to midnight Eastern time and … the iGEM wiki freeze happens!
It’s been a while since I’ve reflected on the meaning of iGEM. When I first joined the iGEM Foundation, I asked you, the readers of the iGEM blog: “What does iGEM mean to you?” In compiling the responses, I learned that iGEM means many things to many people.
Its been an intense and productive few months at iGEM EPIC! Check out our post to hear from our committee heads and get a glimpse of what we’ve done so far!
Latin American Festivals are indeed the stuff of legends, celebrating the rich cultural heritage of one of the most colorful and diverse regions of the world. And there is nothing quite like an iGEM LATAM Festival: from reveling in the milestones reached and appreciating the stories of fellow iGEMers, to learning what may lie ahead and rejoicing in our multiethnic diversity – we know how to celebrate!
We are pleased to announce the iGEM 2021 Jamboree Meetups, November 12-14, all around the world! These in-person satellite events to the Giant Jamboree are about celebrating with the iGEM community locally and, in parallel, connecting all iGEMers globally.
September is World Alzheimer’s Month, a time to raise awareness and challenge the stigma and misinformation that surrounds Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.
With over 5,000 views (and counting!), iGEM TV will take you on synthetic biology journeys from the heart of the tropical forests, to the bottom of the oceans, and even the soil on Mars.
iGEM’s new purpose is to make sure synthetic biology gets developed everywhere by everyone. Yet, how can we talk about “synthetic biology” all around the world when most scientific papers (and podcasts, blog posts, et cetera) are still developed and shared only in English?
Tomorrow (August 12) is International Youth Day, a day designated by the United Nations to celebrate youth as active partners in the global society. This year’s theme “Transforming Food Systems: Youth Innovation for Human and Planetary Health” aims to highlight the meaningful participation of young people in transforming food systems – from the infrastructure needed for feeding a population, to nutrition related chronic disease and unsustainable farming practices.
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.
World Hepatitis Day serves to raise awareness of the global burden of viral hepatitis, an infectious disease causing inflammation of the liver, leading to cirrhosis, liver cancer and death, that affects hundreds of millions of people worldwide. In honor of World Hepatitis Day, we’d like to highlight some of the iGEM teams that have focused on hepatitis through the years.
There is no “right way” to do iGEM for everyone. Some teams begin their projects in November, while others start in June. Some teams have less than 5 members, while others have over 50. And of course, iGEM teams hail from many universities, high schools, and community labs across the world. Whatever the size or composition of your team, you need to find the best way for your team to work together.
At iGEM, we don’t see safety and security as just a set of rules to follow or a list of dangers to avoid. Rather, we think you can’t know whether you’re engineering biology to be good for the world if you haven’t thought about engineering it to be safe and secure. Who is supposed to think about it? We expect everyone in our community, especially teams themselves, to take responsibility for identifying and managing risks from iGEM projects.
Synthetic biology has unveiled a world of potential for improving the society around us. In recent years, genetic engineering tools have enabled the development of low-cost diagnostics platforms, personalized medicines, and environmentally-friendly chemical manufacturing processes. However, it is not always straightforward to know what societal problems to tackle or how to tackle them.
Last year during the pandemic, iGEM teams created 500 videos – videos about their projects, their teams, the problems they are solving. Even before the pandemic, we imagined that videos would be an ideal way for iGEM teams to present their work to the world.
At iGEM, we believe synthetic biology can contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals, helping us to build a society that meets the needs of all people within the means of the planet. In the words of Dr. Elizabeth Bennett during her Sustainability Keynote at the 2020 Giant Jamboree, “synthetic biology gives us a set of tools that we didn’t have before to potentially inform the way we do conservation”.
If you want to solve a real-world problem using synthetic biology, you can’t just study microbes. At some point, you’ll need to study people―their diverse values, opinions, and priorities―too. In addition to the basic requirement of “don’t break the rules or the law” set out in our human subjects research policy, it’s important for your team to take some time to think about how to treat every person participating in your research with respect.
