Awards

EDUCATION AWARD

“The great aim of education is not knowledge but action.” -Herbert Spencer. Promoting mutual dialogue is one of the most essential aspects of outreach activities, which is why it’s the core of our human practice outreach.

We identified the youth and the elderly as our target audiences based on our interviews with medical professionals at Ton Yen General Hospital. The doctors mentioned how these individuals are the most prone to infections and most vulnerable to the effects of antimicrobial resistance. To promote our ideas, we conducted a two-day educational outreach activity that educated over 130 kindergarten students, aged 4-7, on basic hygiene habits, inspired interest in the field of synthetic biology, and promoted awareness and mutual dialogue. Additionally, we set up a booth at Ton Yen General Hospital, featuring a table that hosted information sessions and distributed brochures containing knowledge about our project, as well as information on the threats and concerns regarding AMR.

Click the buttons below to read more information about each education activity:

Hsinchu International
Academy (HIA)

Reaching out to middle and high schoolers about synthetic biology is like constructing the little nodes that eventually support a bridge. We had hoped to achieve resonance among these young minds and inspire them to contribute to the field of synthetic biology, because science isn’t only about the numbers and data within the lab; it is also about nurturing creativity and sparking curiosity about addressing global issues.

SLIDESHOW OVERVIEW

Opening Question:
The opening question draws inspiration from one of the key purposes of the iGEM competition, which is to provide global audiences with a deeper understanding of synthetic biology and its essential role in our evolving world. We wanted them to learn more about this field of study and understand that even high school students can contribute to making a positive change in the world.

Ethical Reflection:
Not only does this outreach event connect to specific aspects of synthetic biology and genetic engineering, it also relates to broader themes like respect and ethicality, integrating the concepts of our project and iGEM into the schoolwide P.R.I.D.E. time curriculum. This raises awareness and promotes the correct attitudes students should have toward scientific innovations, and allows them to reflect.

Educational Video:
Through interactive animations, students learned key concepts related to synthetic biology, like genetic engineering. The video was meant to make the lesson easier for students to comprehend and process the information.

Interactive Questions:
Through a series of questions, students engaged in discussions with one another about synthetic biology concepts and shared their takeaways from the lesson. They considered steps to prevent the spread of AMR in their neighborhoods and built a mutual dialogue that resonated with many people. Not only did they enthusiastically engage in answering our questions and asking thoughtful queries, some of them even showed interest in devoting themselves to the synthetic biology field in the future.

Exit Ticket:
The exit ticket is a brief reflection on the key takeaways from the lesson, and it asks them to propose a solution/real-life implementation of synthetic biology. Students were encouraged to consider three different aspects: environmental, social, and economic, and reflect on how solutions considering these three sectors can create real, impactful change in the world.

OUR MATERIALS

ACTIVITY PRESENTATION SLIDES

GALLERY

Ton Yen General Hospital

Our booth at Ton Yen General Hospital wasn’t just an advertisement for our project, but a space for dialogue and advocacy. We wanted the community to see that antimicrobial resistance is not a distant problem, but a growing trend within our own neighborhoods. More importantly, we hoped to educate them on the simple, practical steps they can take to prevent today’s concerns from escalating into tomorrow’s unstoppable pandemic.

Information Desk:
We had an information desk with brochures available for anyone interested in our project or who wanted to learn more about this issue. We also had a donation box set on the desk for anyone who wanted to fund our project, and we successfully gathered 1,400 NTD.

Public Interactive Q&A Informative Session:
We hosted a short interactive Q&A session, as well as an informational session with the pharmacist team at Ton Yen, to educate patients about common misconceptions regarding antibiotic use and common mistakes people make when seeking medical advice. Most of the information we chose to highlight in our campaign came from insights shared by doctors we interviewed, particularly the key points they believe patients often overlook when going to the hospital. After the brief information session, we asked the live audience to share their takeaways from our campaign and presented them with items we had received from our Hsinchu Health Bureau outreach the day prior. This Q&A session has sparked interest from children to elders, with many of them showing curiosity about our project and actively responding to our queries.

Brochure Handout:
We distributed brochures to over 70 groups of individuals, sharing our project, the arising global issue of AMR, and the steps they themselves can take to prevent this crisis from spreading in their local communities.

After careful preparation, planning, and design for our outreach booth at Ton Yen Hospital, we received positive feedback from the elderly community at the hospital. This was a valuable opportunity for our team to assess both the effectiveness and limitations of our outreach strategies in a real-world medical setting. Our careful planning focuses on combining education, dialogue, and advocacy on antimicrobial resistance (AMR). By providing brochures, an information desk, and an interactive Q&A session with the pharmacists, we ensured that our content was not only accurate but also accessible to a diverse audience, from children to the elderly. The activity not only spread awareness but also corrected the misconceptions through direct engagement, showing the effectiveness of integrating expert insights with interactive methods. While the event was relatively successful in terms of outreach and community support through donations, we recognised the need for more sustainable follow-up, such as digital resources or simplified visuals for border accessibility. Overall, this activity reflected our team’s deliberate approach to outreach while highlighting lessons we can build on for future impact.

OUR MATERIALS

BROCHURES

GALLERY

Star Academy

During our outreach to Star Academy kindergarteners, it wasn’t just a typical one-on-one lesson, but instead an experience we hope the children will remember forever.
The outreach activity centred on one magical element that kids possess: creativity.
And what better way for them to express that than through games and interactive activities?

INTERACTIVE ACTIVITY STATIONS

GROUP PRESENTATION

Simple introduction and overview of today’s activities alongside Q&As and hygiene education. Included important notes regarding taking the prescription.

NO GERMS ALIVE pt 1

The kids were handed paper cups and told to decorate them with different germs and drawings.

NO GERMS ALIVE pt 2

All cups were stacked into a tower, and kids took turns knocking the cups down. Our team had prepared 6 cups that we drew as the base, and these cups were taped to the ground with duct tape. All of the kids took turns knocking down cups using a tennis ball. At the end of the activity, we debriefed by asking participants to share their observations. The taped-down cups represented bacteria with resistance, the ball represented antibiotics, and the untapped cups represented germs without resistance. Many kids soon identified that cups without tape were straightforward to knock down compared to the ones taped down, linking to our topic of antimicrobial resistance.

BUILD-A-BUG BIOLAB

Kids were given a piece of paper and markers to draw their own bacteria. Afterwards, they went up to discuss the purposes of their bug, and many kids correlated that with solving sickness and creating special abilities for each bug.

HUNT FOR THE ANTIBIOTICS

Kids were informed about good and bad bacteria and were asked to identify the hidden bacteria printouts scattered throughout the playground. After they found the bacteria printout, they brought it to the hosts and asked whether the bacteria were beneficial for humans.

LIL JOEY AND THE JUNGLE’S SICK STORY!

We presented our hand-drawn storybook to the kids, which contained material like how the misuse of prescribed medication can lead to serious infections and spread diseases.

The story features the character Lil Joey, a lion cub who saved the jungle by promoting proper hygiene tips to the entire community and identifying key problem sources, such as the use of folk medicine, incomplete medication, and sharing prescriptions. During the storytelling session, children were asked to share their opinions on antibiotic use and ways to prevent similar situations from happening, aligning with key themes of our outreach goals.

Our kindergarten outreach strategy embodies the values recognised by iGEM’s Best Education Award by using imaginative, age-appropriate activities to communicate complex synthetic biology and AMR concepts in simple, memorable ways. Through storytelling, games, and creative drawing tasks, we not only educated over 130 young students on how antibiotic resistance works and how to prevent it, but also sparked their curiosity and engagement with synthetic biology by inviting them to design “super germs” with the power to combat antibiotic resistance. This playful yet informative approach equips children with lifelong public health habits, such as proper handwashing and following doctors’ instructions, while planting the seeds for a future interest in STEM. By targeting a rarely reached age group, creating fully documented and replicable educational materials, and inspiring real behavioural change, our methods directly support iGEM’s mission to make synthetic biology education accessible, impactful, and community-driven.

OUR MATERIALS

CHILDREN’S STORY BOOK CHILDREN’S COLOURING BOOK

PRESENTATION SLIDES DOCUMENTED LESSON PLAN

GALLERY

Post-Outreach Student
Interview Feedback

To assess the real-time impact of our outreach, we conducted interviews with several students to gather their opinions and thoughts about our event after the activities had concluded. As we conversed with them, many showed enthusiasm about dedicating themselves to a career in biology or pharmaceuticals in the future, especially highlighting how our outreach activities have further inspired them to care about this issue and advancements in the field of synthetic biology.

Questions we asked them:
- What's your name, and what grade are you in?
- How has the recent iGEM event on 10/01 impacted your thoughts regarding the synthetic biology field?
- Do our outreach activities inspire you to devote to synthetic biology or similar fields in your intended major of study in the future?

In the last few weeks, as preparation for our outreach and educational activity, our team dedicated several days to planning and refining how we would teach the entire school, reaching more than 200 middle and high school students about synthetic biology, iGEM, the SDGs, and the ethics and responsibilities of working in the sciences. This lesson plan, presented by our team members to every class, ensured that all students had the chance to participate. Many of them showed genuine interest in synthetic biology, with over 85% of students actively engaging in our interactive activities and discussions. Through a structured session that included opening questions, ethical reflection, an educational video, group dialogue, and exit tickets, students not only gained scientific knowledge but also connected it to values, community, and real-world challenges. Their curiosity and thoughtful reflections demonstrated that the activity successfully fostered dialogue, encouraged critical thinking about AMR prevention, and inspired interest in future contributions to synthetic biology, while also helping us refine how to communicate our project more effectively across diverse audiences.