Overview ​

Our team devotes to breaking down disciplinary barriers through diverse practices, striving to advance the popularization of synthetic biology knowledge to wider audiences.

In terms of audience reach, we span across age groups and educational contexts: starting from young kindergarteners to teenage students, covering from public schools to special education schools, and extending further to the general public.

Regarding geographical influence, the participants of our activities have grown from their origin in Guangzhou to China, and now have expanded beyond national borders to reach 31 countries worldwide. We deliver synthetic biology resources from local communities to global audiences to transcend the constraints of geography to realize cross-regional and cross-cultural knowledge sharing.

In terms of activity formats, we blend tradition with innovation, spanning from thematic lectures, to fun- filled interactive games; from lightweight science content on social media, to hands-on experimental workshops. This multi-dimensional model, covering "from listening to learning, from playing to practicing", ensures that knowledge is not just heard, but truly experienced and understood.

With unwavering dedication, we are determined to keep fostering synthetic biology's accessibility and understanding for all, no matter where or who they are.

Part I Beginning ​

Special Three-Days Summer Camp ​

By chance, Qiqi volunteered at an event for special needs teenagers. It noticed that these children had few opportunities to learn science-related content in their courses. After communication, Qiqi got the chance to launch a science enlightenment course that integrates lychees and synthetic biology at Qihui School.

The course targets 18 specialf needs teenagers from Grade 1 and Grade 2 of the vocational high school at Qihui School in Nansha District, Guangzhou. Most of them have autism, and some also have mild to moderate intellectual disabilities, which brings particularities to their cognitive understanding and knowledge absorption. Due to the lack of relevant content in the existing curriculum, these children have barely been exposed to synthetic biology knowledge, nor have they had a systematic understanding of the principles and importance of food preservation in daily life — this is one of the core intentions behind planning this popular science course.

Following the cognitive path of "phenomenon observation → method verification → principle association", the course consists of three modules:

"Lychees spoil because bacteria eat them," "Beneficial bacteria are like little guardians protecting lychees," and "I loved the drawing session most — it helped me understand the lessons better." When Qiqi heard the children's words, she recalled the smiles on their faces during the 3-day camp. Having recognized the significance of this kind of education, Qiqi wanted to reach out to children of more age groups. Before setting off officially, she made a preliminary plan and went to her education professor, hoping to get some guidance.

Professor Zhu Junhua

Assistant Professor of Practice in Social Science Education, Pillar of General Education

Significance: She clarifies the narrative logic in terms of education and provides overall guiding significance for subsequent activities.

Details: Three Aspects: - Project-based Learning, Problem-Centered Learning, and Active Learning .

Extract each link in the project and integrate them into the learning process of children in different age groups accordingly. Realize one of the above three learning modes, and at the same time, exercise students' soft skills such as communication and interaction during the teaching process. Among them, the project-based learning method - promoting learning through projects - is similar to the promoting learning through competitions approach of the iGEM competition. Meanwhile, it achieves the three goals of promoting synthetic biology, promoting synthetic biology competitions, and advancing education.

After her conversation with the professor, Qiqi came to two key realizations: first, she recognized how meaningful it is to take synthetic biology and food preservation as the themes for science education; second, she understood that different age groups require distinct teaching methods to fulfill the corresponding educational values for each group. With these insights, Qiqi embarked on a long yet rewarding journey of teaching and knowledge-sharing.

Part II Journey Through Ages ​

Little Swan Kindergarten ​

Qiqi's first stop was Little Swan Kindergarten, where she met children aged 4–6. In the first session, Qiqi introduced the idea of lychee spoilage and how “good microbes” can help protect fruits with a “magical coat”.Through direct object observation, comic book storytelling, and hands-on group activities, children gradually developed an understanding of freshness, microbes, and the importance of preservation. To extend the learning, Qiqi and the teachers designed a simple experiment with two fruit samples—one sealed and one unsealed—to let children observe how quickly each piece spoiled. The young learners raised many interesting questions, such as “What is the real internal reason that makes a lychee go bad?”

Inspired by these questions, and encouraged by the kindergarten principal’s advice to make future activities more visual and science-based, Qiqi decided to return for a second session. This time, she guided the children deeper into the world of biology by introducing DNA as the “instruction manual of life.” Through colorful illustrations and pipe-cleaner crafts, they built models of the DNA double helix, linking the microbes’ protective roles to the genetic instructions inside every living being.

Together, these two sessions at Little Swan Kindergarten marked the starting point of Qiqi’s broader education journey. The children developed a preliminary understanding of lychee preservation, as well as the biological meaning of life instructions hidden inside DNA. For many, this was their first encounter with the concepts of DNA and genes. They eagerly participated in class discussions and, after the session, some even asked thoughtful questions such as: “So, is the way I look also decided by my genes?” Qiqi was delighted to see that her activities had sown the very first seed of synthetic biology in the minds of these young learners.

Comic Book - The Magical Adventure of Lychee Qiqi

After meeting the kindergarten kids, Qiqi was pleasantly surprised to find that they were very open to the science activities and gave wonderfully positive feedback about what they learned. This greatly boosted Qiqi’s confidence and encouraged her to reach out to children of primary school, hoping to plant a small seed of curiosity about synthetic biology in their hearts—a seed that might one day grow into a passion for science.

Education for Primary School ​

Building on the success of her kindergarten outreach, Qiqi began to explore how synthetic biology could be taught to older children with stronger reasoning skills and curiosity about how the world works. She realized that elementary school students—imaginative, eager to learn, and ready to engage with science more deeply—were the perfect next audience. With this in mind, Qiqi continued her journey to Qianhai Innovation Education Group’s elementary school.

Here, she introduced the fascinating world of synthetic biology by comparing DNA to LEGO bricks—tiny building blocks that can be assembled into new functions inside cells. She also used the analogy of computer codes: just as codes input into a computer create different games, genes act as programs inside cells, producing outputs such as colors, smells, or medicines. To make it even more relatable, Qiqi shared real-life examples: the probiotics in yogurt that act like “tiny workers,” bacteria that produce vanilla for ice cream, glowing microbes that shine like glow sticks, and even flowers engineered to sense emotions. The students were amazed and began to imagine what new abilities they would give bacteria if they had the power.

Afterward, Qiqi introduced her team’s lychee preservation project using a lively cartoon animation. She explained why lychees spoil so quickly, the challenges in keeping them fresh, and how synthetic biology could provide a new “protective coat” for the fruit.

In the final activity, students expressed their learning through drawings. Their feedback was creative and inspiring: some said that “synthetic biology is like a magic hat that transforms ordinary things into something new,” while others compared it to a “factory” where small parts are processed and assembled into something stronger. Many of their artworks also featured the storybook character Lychee Qiqi, showing how they had connected science with the story. Seeing their curiosity and imagination blossom, Qiqi felt delighted—this was the moment when elementary students took their very first step into the world of synthetic biology.

Education for Junior School ​

After her successful experiences at kindergartens and elementary schools, Qiqi realized that older students were ready for even more— not just to learn what synthetic biology is, but also how real research projects are designed and carried out. To truly expand her education journey, she decided to bring synthetic biology into the world of middle school students, where curiosity meets critical thinking.

At Qianhai Innovation Education Group’s middle school, Qiqi introduced the iGEM competition as a global stage for young scientists. She shared inspiring stories from past teams: students who taught E. coli to turn tea waste into osmanthus-scented molecules, teams that built probiotic “guardians” to detoxify food, and even projects that created bacteria producing banana or mint aromas. These examples showed middle schoolers that synthetic biology was not just about imagination, but also about solving real-world problems.

Qiqi then presented her own team, Lychee Guardians, and explained their journey— from field investigations with farmers, to identifying the problem of lychee spoilage, and finally to designing wet lab strategies for preservation. For many students, this was their first glimpse into how a scientific project grows step by step, linking motivation, practice, and laboratory work.

The session ended with lively group discussions. The students debated creative ideas for lychee preservation, from packaging innovations to microbial solutions. Their engagement impressed Qiqi: the conversations were energetic, the questions sharp, and the creativity abundant. In their eyes, Qiqi saw not only curiosity, but also the budding spirit of future iGEMers. She felt proud that her educational journey had now reached a stage where young learners could begin to think like researchers, planting deeper seeds of innovation and responsibility in the field of synthetic biology.

Shimen High School ​

A teacher from Shimen high school invited Qiqi to give a lecture *on synthetic biology to the students who had just entered high school.

As a result, Qiqi held the “Introduction to Lychee Guardians, Synthetic Biology and iGEM” lecture, with approximately 150 newly graduated junior high school students in attendance. The lecture was conducted in Chinese and English to ensure inclusive learning and clear explanation of synthetic biology content.

Considering that these students have just finished middle school learning, Qiqi possess a certain level of biological knowledge but still lack systematic instruction and explanation regarding some emerging biotechnologies and biological disciplines. She has chosen to elaborate on our wet lab circuit in relatively detailed terms. However, when explaining concepts like "synthetic biology," she will use metaphors to make the content more accessible. For instance, she compare synthetic biology to LEGO bricks.

In the interactive Q&A session after the lecture, some students raised meaningful questions from their perspectives. The answering process also gave Qiqi a deeper understanding of her own.

One example:

• Question: Why not modify the lychee itself?
• Answer: We have been avoiding direct lychee modification: modifying food plants faces legal restrictions and low public acceptance.

Apart from the questions related to the knowledge about the lychee preservation, there are also students caring about the iGEM competition which she have never heard about. For example, a student asked the questions related to the career planning. After the answer, they shown great interest in this new subject and popular competition.

After the lecture, qiqi distributed the keychains and stickers of lychee image to every student, promoting the “Lychee Guardians” project and the iGEM experience in their families and peer group.

Synbio lecture for Students of the Olympic Biology Competition ​

Qiqi participated in China's Olympic Biology Competition in high school. Her coach learned about the positive feedback from the previous activity and invited her to Shimen Middle School in Foshan City—one of the top high schools in Guangdong Province to explain to the students about her project and synthetic biology.

In the school, Qiqi delivered relevant lectures to students of Grade 10 (Senior One) and Grade 12 (Senior Three), and every class has about 40 students.

Considering that all of them are students from the biology contest preparation course, Qiqi explained synthetic biology in greater detail. For students in Grade 10 and Grade 12, the depth and difficulty of qiqi's explanations regarding the technical details of wet labs and dry labs will vary.

In biology education at high schools in mainland China, topics like genetic engineering are incorporated, but synthetic biology is not taught as a systematic subject. Moreover, knowledge acquisition mostly relies on textbooks and exercise problems. Qiqi aimed to help these students gain a more systematic and comprehensive understanding of synthetic biology and its application in lychee preservation through her lectures.

For the lecture to Grade 12 students, she took into account that they were from Shimen Middle School’s competition classes: many had participated in Olympiads of various subjects and possessed a solid academic foundation. Therefore, she explained the design details and principles of our wet lab and dry lab in greater depth. During the lecture, she had engaging interactions with the students, who showed great interest in her presentation and carefully noted down their thoughts and understandings. After the lecture, they raised many interesting questions about our project, such as:

• Will the waxy coating affect the flavor of lychees?

For the lecture to the new Grade 10 students—who were members of the Junior Academy of Sciences, a class that enables students to start learning competition knowledge from junior high school, and had only been studying biology competition knowledge for a short time—Qiqi adjusted the depth and difficulty of her explanation accordingly and sent the posters to them in advance. To her surprise, the students read the posters carefully and formed their own insights.

In the Q&A session, they actively raised their hands to ask questions; many of these questions were either ones she had never been asked before or issues she had not previously considered, which made her very happy and surprised. Examples include:

• Will the uneven distribution of the sprayed bacteria lead to uneven preservation effects on individual litchi fruits?
• Without a concentration detection mechanism for product synthesis, how do you ensure no overproduction?

Even after the class ended, many students stayed to communicate with us and ask more questions.

Notably, Qiqi is an alumni of Shimen Middle School. They commented that high school studies are often filled with endless exercises and pressure, and they hoped our lecture could bring the students content beyond textbooks and practice problems.

Data Analysis after Shimen Lectures ​

After organizing three synthetic biology education activities for Shimen students, we conducted an anonymous questionnaire survey among the participants.

Through the questionnaire, we found that before the lectures, most students had little in-depth understanding or prior learning of synthetic biology, and more than half of them were unaware of the iGEM competition.

However, after the lectures, an overwhelming majority of students gained a much clearer understanding of synthetic biology and expressed a strong willingness to engage with and learn this discipline in the future. At the same time, most students not only regarded iGEM as an interesting communication platform and competition but also showed readiness to participate in synthetic biology-related competitions in their future learning career.

Similarly, we were very pleased to see that most students were satisfied with our education activities; they believed that the previously unfamiliar concepts of synthetic biology had been explained by us in a clear and easy-to-understand way.

HKUST-GZ Open Day ​

Immediately after the National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao)—a crucial exam for Chinese students transitioning from senior high school to university—Grade 12 seniors were filled with both confusion and aspirations for their future. Around this pivotal time, HKUST-GZ hosted its Campus Open Day, welcoming thousands of visitors from the public and future university students. Seizing this rare opportunity, Qiqi decided to promote the field of synthetic biology and share insights about the iGEM competition.

After thorough communication and approval from the school, Qiqi set up a booth in the area with the highest foot traffic. Facing an enthusiastic crowd who were largely unfamiliar with the subject, she used the simplest and most engaging language to explain what synthetic biology is, what iGEM represents, and how this field connects to real-world applications. Her accessible explanations successfully sparked visitors’ curiosity, making a meaningful contribution to the public understanding of synthetic biology.

At the same time, Qiqi prepared a lychee transportation mini-game at the booth, allowing participants to simulate the process of fresh fruit transportation through fingertip operations. This interactive activity gave them an immersive experience of the challenges in freshness preservation and the significant role of technological innovations. Many students gained an intuitive understanding of the difficulties in lychee preservation through the game, which heightened their interest in preservation methods and the scientific principles behind them.

In addition, Qiqi introduced how synthetic biology approaches could be applied to extend the shelf life of lychees — a topic far beyond the scope of high school biology knowledge. She also provided guidance on university and major selection, hoping that her answers and experiences would inspire these students during their summer vacation, a critical period for their future choices.

Community Education ​

In order to make Qiqi's educational activities cover as many age groups as possible and to promote knowledge of synthetic biology to all sectors of society, Qiqi carried out educational and exchange activities in the community around . He chose a community called Xinghe Dongyuewan(星河 东悦湾), located in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, which has a dense population and a large flow of people. She selected the middle-aged and elderly as her main target audience.

Initially, Qiqi hoped to hold this event in the form of a community lecture, but through practice, he found that using a lecture could not efficiently cover the entire community with his educational activities. Therefore, Qiqi promptly adjusted his approach and conducted educational activities for the middle-aged and elderly in the community in the form of interview and face-to-face discussion, which greatly utilized the characteristic of the community's large flow of people.

During this community education activity, Qiqi have fully conducted educational initiatives targeting the middle-aged and elderly group, filling the gap in their knowledge of synthetic biology.

This educational activity still revealed some problems, especially in the dissemination of synthetic biology knowledge.

• First, the threshold for understanding synthetic biology is high. It is difficult for some of the middle-aged and elderly in the community who have not received higher education to understand synthetic biology, which has created some obstacles for our promotion of synthetic biology.
• Second, influenced by some outdated ideas, there is resistance to synthetic biology among the middle-aged and elderly. This kind of thought is difficult to reverse through verbal education alone. However, through this education activity ,we also learned a lot, especially about conducting educational activities and promoting synthetic biology for middle-aged and elderly people.

Through analyzing and finding the solutions to these difficulties, we made many targeted adjustments, considering that science has no age limits: we lowered the cognitive barrier by explaining synthetic biology in more relatable, easy words instead of complex technical jargon. Secondly, Qiqi designed interesting educational formats and prepared some small gifts to fully motivate the public's initiative, encouraging them to proactively learn about synthetic biology. These improvements and methods have also greatly assisted the implementation of our following educational activities.

Science Presentation Competition ​

Qiqi got to know the 2025 Guangzhou Regional Science Presentation Competition held at the Guangdong Science Center and participated in it.

The competition attracted participants from across the city, including science popularization practitioners, researchers, technical backbones of high-tech enterprises, and science communication enthusiasts from all walks of life.

In the preliminary round, 678 contestants competed fiercely, and finally, 164 contestants from 29 teams qualified for the finals.

In addition to on-site audiences, the competition was broadcast live both via video streaming and photo streaming. The video live stream garnered over 80,000 views, while the photo live stream received more than 10,000 views.

During her 4-minute speech in the final round, Qiqi emphasized the significant value of technological advancement in lychee preservation, and further elaborated on synthetic biology, the iGEM competition, and their significance for college students to turn their ideas into reality. Her vivid and engaging interpretation won high praise from the judges and the audience. She ultimately scored 90.38 points, ranking 26th in the competition, and also obtained over 3,000 votes in the online voting segment.

• Wanfeng PENG, one of the judges of the competition, who holds the position of Senior Engineer at the Guangzhou Branch of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, stated: "Many contestants focused their interpretations on cutting-edge scientific and technological achievements, especially those local to Guangzhou."
• An audience named Siyi LIANG said: "The interpretations this time were very interesting. They helped me gain a better understanding of how synthetic biology can be applied to solve related problems. Before this, I didn't even know what synthetic biology was, but after listening to the interpretations, I have a much clearer understanding of it.

Qiqi is delighted to have had the opportunity to make our voice heard by more people through this competition. Meanwhile, she also learned a great deal about presentation techniques from other outstanding speakers, which she will apply to future educational activities.

Qiqi's Synthetic Biology Outreach in Guangzhou ​

To promote synthetic biology and her iGEM team's project, Qiqi conducted a public outreach event in Guangzhou's busiest districts: Beijing Road and the Canton Tower.

Her first stop, the bustling Beijing Road, proved unsuitable for her planned surveys and quizzes due to the massive crowds that gathered instantly. Adapting quickly, Qiqi switched to a broad presentation using a brochure, introducing a new lychee preservation method and the fundamentals of synthetic biology. While this approach achieved wide exposure, it lacked the detailed, one-on-one engagement she had originally intended.

Applying the lessons learned, her event at the Canton Tower was more focused and successful. There, she used a quick-fire quiz game to spark in-depth conversations and gather valuable feedback. The public's reactions were diverse. A British gentleman with a scientific background saw technology as positive progress, stating it would increase his willingness to purchase the product. Conversely, another woman expressed a natural resistance to novel technologies being used on her food. A recurring theme among interviewees was a fear that new techniques could produce harmful substances, highlighting a widespread need for clear information to correct public misconceptions.

In conclusion, Qiqi's initiative successfully blended two vital outreach strategies. The event at Beijing Road provided breadth by introducing synthetic biology to a large audience, while the interactions at the Canton Tower offered depth by gathering crucial public insights. The comprehensive effort was a significant step in making a complex scientific field more accessible to society.

So far, Qiqi’s journey has been filled with wonderful memories and many inspiring encounters with different friends. But Qiqi was no longer content to keep her steps within the Greater Bay Area of China. She longed to travel farther—to regions far from the lychee’s place of origin—where she could share ideas, gather broader feedback on the project, and contribute to expanding the reach of synthetic biology education.

Part III From Local to the World ​

Lectures for Junior High and Senior High School Students in Shandong ​

To expand the geographical reach and age coverage of our science popularization activities on synthetic biology, Qiqi traveled to Yantai, Shandong Province, where she conducted two separate educational lectures for junior high and high school students. As a northern Chinese city located far from the lychee’s place of origin, Yantai provides a setting where our project demonstrates significant potential application value.

For junior and senior high school students in mainland China, both synthetic biology and iGEM are relatively unfamiliar and novel concepts, while the Lingnan cultural heritage embodied by the lychee is also little known to people in northern China. Therefore, the aim of this science popularization lecture was not only to present our research achievements in the field of intelligent preservation—such as the application of melatonin and wax coating technologies—but also to enable young audiences to appreciate the vast development prospects of synthetic biology and to understand how science can address practical challenges while preserving cultural values.

For approximately 40 junior high school students, Qiqi employed analogies and other interactive methods to introduce the fundamental concepts of synthetic biology, explain the core ideas of our project, and encourage students to record the lecture content in the form of illustrated hand-written posters.

For the high school session, Qiqi integrated synthetic biology with textbook knowledge, presented its development prospects, and provided a detailed explanation of the theoretical foundations of our project in a class of 52 students. After the lecture, Qiqi also conducted a questionnaire survey to gather high school students’ views on the content and prospects of our project. The survey results indicated that the high school students had developed a strong acceptance of our project and synthetic biology, along with a deeper understanding and keen interest in the subject.

During the lectures, Qiqi observed an interesting phenomenon: when asked whether they would be willing to purchase products preserved using synthetic biology techniques, junior high school students initially showed stronger resistance compared with their high school counterparts. However, after a brief introduction to iGEM and synthetic biology, most students showed great interest in both synthetic biology and the event itself, and exhibited a marked increase in acceptance of the technology. This finding highlights that enhancing both the depth and breadth of synthetic biology education among students remains a challenging yet crucial task for all iGEMers.

Through her lectures, Qiqi shared a lot of knowledge about synthetic biology and food preservation, and in return, she received fresh and insightful feedback from different perspectives. Still, Qiqi kept thinking: while in-person talks are certainly effective, how can we quickly expand the impact and reach of these educational efforts? That’s when an idea came to her—why not harness the power of the internet and use streaming platforms to carry out even more diverse and engaging educational activities?

Traditional culture website ​

To further link the Lychee Guardians project with Chinese cultural heritage, Qiqi collaborated with NAU-CHINA on the Into China, Into iGEM (ICII) platform. This website was designed as a collaborative space to connect synthetic biology with traditional culture, inspired by the Silk Road as a symbol of exchange. In 2025, ICII brought together 14 iGEM teams from 11 cities across China, each contributing unique cultural and scientific perspectives.

On the platform, Qiqi presented the cultural roots of lychees in Lingnan history— how people once invented preservation tricks like beeswax coating or ice storage. By placing Lychee Guardians in this context, she showed how synthetic biology could continue the same cultural dialogue with modern tools.

Through ICII, Qiqi not only highlighted the cultural depth of lychees but also joined a broader community of iGEM teams using science as a bridge between tradition and innovation.

Smashing synthetic biology rumours science brochure ​

During Qiqi's teaching practice, she noticed that students had some misunderstandings about synthetic biology. Coincidentally, CJUH-JLU-China was attempting to create a "Smashing Synthetic Biology Rumours Science Brochure", which aims to draw on diverse experiences, dissect rumors in this field with rigorous evidence, clarify misunderstandings, popularize the knowledge and value of the discipline, promote rational dialogue, and help synthetic biology play its role in benefiting humanity. Thus, Qiqi also joined in and tried to write about a rumor she had encountered, contributing her part to advancing this initiative.

Online Lecture for University Students ​

The lecture "Exploring Synthetic Biology", coordinated by Qiqi's iGEM team (HKUST-GZ) and co-hosted with three university iGEM teams (HZAU, JLU, HKUST), held pre-event coordination meetings to clarify themes and avoid content overlap. It covered diverse synthetic biology research directions, highlighted each team's research features, and integrated university students' scientific research cases, balancing academic depth with practical guidance. It offered a professional and practical academic feast for life sciences teachers and students, cross-disciplinary enthusiasts, and research competition participants.

In the interactive session, a "field-specific targeted questioning" approach was adopted: the audience asked questions about each team's research, which members answered in detail. For fields with no on-site questions, the host raised high-frequency questions collected earlier via registration channels, ensuring in-depth communication and effective resolution of professional and practical puzzles.

After the main session, a 20-minute cross-team roundtable discussion was held. The four teams exchanged views on "future breakthroughs in synthetic biology sub-fields" and "cross-team cooperation possibilities". Each team's representatives shared insights based on their presentations, providing new ideas for interdisciplinary integration and cross-university research collaboration.

This multi-team online lecture not only enabled accurate dissemination of synthetic biology knowledge and efficient sharing of research experience but also built a cross-university, cross-disciplinary academic exchange bridge, laying a solid foundation for subsequent disciplinary development and research practice.

SynBio Themed Debate ​

The Debate and Our Champion Prize

An innovative education activity that Qiqi initiated was the SynBio Themed Debate, a nationwide event designed and organized by our team. Four university debate teams from different regions of China participated, and the competition was broadcast online, enabling the wider public to join as an audience.

The purpose of this debate was not only to showcase the perspectives of well-trained debaters, but also to help the public form a more rational and objective understanding of synthetic biology. Through lively arguments, misconceptions about the field were challenged, while the practical applications of synthetic biology were introduced in a more accessible way.

During the debates, participants explored pressing questions about the ethical and regulatory controversies surrounding synthetic biology. This inspired our team to further consult legal experts and examine what kinds of regulatory challenges their own product might face in the future. This was the first time Qiqi deeply realized how synthetic biology product design,though promising, was inevitably tied to legal and ethical considerations.

By reflecting on this event, Qiqi saw the great potential of combining attractive formats, such as debates, game and workshop, with their science communication goals. This creative approach not only engaged university students and the broader audience, but also proved to be a powerful way of promoting synthetic biology in society.

Litchi Odyssey ​

In our effort to make the education module more engaging and impactful, qiqi turned to gamification after studying past best education projects. Inspired by Mario, we designed a unique challenge game for our Lychee project, named Litchi Odyssey targeting the public, especially students and event participants.

In the game, Me--a cute lychee overcomes four levels, each representing a real-world challenge it faces from harvest to shelf: damage from falling objects during picking, shaking during transport due to improper handling, bacterial contamination from unclean storage, and quality loss from high temperatures.

The game, accessible via an online link and showcased at offline events, uses a simple feedback system that lets players learn lychee preservation knowledge while having fun. Qiqi collected feedback through post-game interviews, with over 300 plays so far and more than 70% of participants rating it “fun and educational.”

Game Scene of Lychee Odyssey

During development, Qiqi consulted Dr. Wang Ziyan from HKUST-GZ, a researcher in serious games, who recognized the game’s potential and encouraged us to gather larger-scale data for academic use. Moving forward, we aim to refine the gameplay and interaction design, expanding its application in more public engagement and science communication contexts to create lasting, sustainable educational impact.

Search Website ​

Qiqi have created an online knowledge retrieval platform to make learning synthetic biology faster and easier. All users can access structured iGEM resources in one place, including experimental methods, past projects, evaluation criteria, and official documents, without relying on scattered search results. This platform is designed specifically for iGEM teams, students, and educators, supporting multilingual search, topic browsing, and basic filtering to help users quickly locate the content they need.

At present, the platform has integrated over 4000 professional knowledge entries related to synthetic biology and iGEM competitions, covering iGEM official documents and some team resources from the past decade. In internal testing, over 80% of users reported that the platform is more efficient than traditional search methods, especially when searching for experimental protocols and past project examples, saving an average of about 40% of time.

As part of our testing, qiqi asked Hanson Jin, a sophomore economics student at UCLA with no background in synthetic biology, to try out our platform. Despite his lack of prior knowledge in the field, he was able to quickly complete the synthetic biology task qiqi assigned to him, gaining a deeper understanding of the field's framework. Impressed with the platform's effectiveness, Hanson shared it with his younger brother, Jason Jin, a middle school student at Keystone International School who is studying biology. Jason shared that the platform, when combined with his textbook, helped him truly understand biology, making complex concepts much clearer and easier to grasp.

In the future, qiqi will continue to update content, optimize filtering mechanisms, and attempt to visualize the platform in the form of a knowledge map, striving to build it into an open and sustainable center for synthetic biology education and exchange.

The metaverse journey of the Lychee Guardians ​

To broaden our education module’s reac, qiqi adopted a less common approach—using streaming media for science communication. Riding on the popularity of The Lychee of Chang’an (40+ billion online views), I targeted young internet users and fans of biology or the series.

Qiqi released six videos on Douyin and TikTok, gaining 14,000+ views and ~1,300 likes. Content ranged from lychee sample collection and wet lab work to highlights from offline HP events. Qiqi's lychee variety tasting video earned 362 likes, while a picture book activity for children with autism gained 431 likes. Viewers came from 21 provinces, including Xinjiang, and a high school student from Hangzhou even reached out to learn more—showing clear impact.

And to help the public gain a better understanding of our work, Qiqi took the opportunity of filming our team’s promotion video with HP members, to document one day of an iGEMer in our team from a third-person perspective. The footage was then edited into a vlog and released on TikTok. Through this engaging format, Qiqi not only promoted synthetic biology and the iGEM competition, but also enhanced team’s presence on streaming platforms, thereby increasing the public visibility of our project.

The content Qiqi shared on streaming platforms gained an impressive number of views and comments from people in different regions, which gave her a real sense of accomplishment. Just then, she received exciting news: a group of teachers and students from Kazakhstan would be visiting HKUST(GZ)—a wonderful opportunity to broaden horizons and learn from one another!

Kazakhstani Students’ Visit to HKUST (GZ) iGEM Lab ​

During one of the her most memorable education activities, Qiqi and her teammates welcomed a group of high school students from Kazakhstan to HKUST(GZ). It was the first time Qiqi had ever carried out an educational exchange with participants from *outside of China. The activity included a detailed introduction of the her project, a guided tour of the laboratory, and a final questionnaire session to collect feedback and evaluate learning outcomes.

Qiqi recalled that the students showed great curiosity about synthetic biology and the laboratory environment. However, through this experience the team also realized an important challenge: while lychee is a familiar fruit in Southern China, it is almost unknown to many foreign participants. The team’s well-prepared introduction—starting with lychee as the cultural and scientific entry point—actually caused some initial confusion among the Kazakh students.

This reflection inspired Qiqi to rethink how to better design cross-cultural outreach. They concluded that future activities should consider different cultural backgrounds and incorporate more universally understandable elements. This event not only marked the beginning of the team’s international educational engagement, but also served as a turning point that motivated them to plan more inclusive and globally relevant science communication activities.

Part IV Last Carnival ​

HKUST-GZ PLACE International Summer Camp Exhibition ​

After Qiqi’s education experience to the senior high school students from Kazakhstan, she discovered that many international students had little knowledge of lychees and no emotional connection to them. This realization inspired the team to create new forms of education that could link science with culture, making lychees more relatable to diverse audiences. The PLACE International Summer Camp provided the perfect opportunity to expand this idea.

At the HKUST(GZ) 2025 PLACE Camp, which brought together nearly 150 international students from 31 countries and 400 new undergraduates, Qiqi guided visitors through an exhibition titled “The Long Journey of A Lychee: A Dialogue Between Science and Culture.” Designed to blend Chinese tradition with modern synthetic biology, the exhibition allowed participants to explore both the historical and scientific significance of lychees.

The exhibition unfolded in three main modules. Through exhibition panels, Qiqi narrated the story of ancient preservation methods — bamboo sealing, ice jar cooling, and beeswax coating — and the cultural symbolism of lychees in Chinese history. She then introduced modern approaches, highlighting synthetic biology solutions such as melatonin biosynthesis and biological wax membranes. To make the learning interactive, Qiqi invited participants to play “Lychee Road Monopoly,” a large board game that recreated the challenges of transporting lychees to the Tang dynasty capital of Chang’an. Finally, she engaged the audience with synthetic biology word games, where participants learned technical terms in a playful and memorable way.

A feedback board concluded the exhibition, allowing participants to leave lychee-shaped stickers and written comments. Many left enthusiastic notes such as “This is great!” and “2025 iGEM Bravo!” while others raised meaningful questions. Some asked how synthetic biology compared with traditional cold-chain preservation, while others wondered whether such methods might change the natural flavor of lychees. These reflections encouraged Qiqi to think more critically about how to communicate the project and further refined her Human Practices work.

Through this exhibition, Qiqi became more than a symbol of Chinese culture: she served as a bridge connecting ancient traditions with modern science, enabling participants from around the world to appreciate lychees not only as a fruit, but also as a messenger of innovation and cross-cultural dialogue.

Global Youth Breakthrough in Synthetic Biology ​

At the PLACE summer camp held by HKUST (Guangzhou), young students from 31 countries gathered together. Qiqi realized that this was an excellent opportunity to introduce iGEM and synthetic biology to them in a relaxed and fun way. Considering that participants have different academic and cultural backgrounds, qiqi hope to break the sense of unfamiliarity, stimulate curiosity, and create a pleasant atmosphere for further in-depth communication through interactive activities.

So qiqi designed two small games. The first one is the "fill in the blank challenge", which allows everyone to understand the basic concepts of synthetic biology in an easy word game. The second one is our original "Lychee Adventure Game", where a personified lychee needs to overcome various difficulties in preservation and transportation, vividly conveying scientific knowledge in a gamified form. The atmosphere at the event was lively, and everyone laughed while discussing the game content. Adger from the United States said, "This lychee game is much more fun than textbook learning, it's so vivid!" Arne from Germany said, "It's hard to find fresh lychee in Germany, but maybe one day you can taste it in Europe thanks to your project

Qiqi found that this form not only quickly brings international students closer together, but also cultivates their interest in synthetic biology through an entertaining and educational approach. In the future, we plan to use these interactive games as a fixed module for iGEM promotion and make localized adaptations based on different cultural backgrounds, bringing more people into the field of scientific exchange.

Synthetic Biology Workshop ​

Qiqi independently organized an iGEM Synthetic Biology Workshop at HKUST (Guangzhou), inviting international students from countries including the United States, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom, Australia, the Netherlands, and Belarus to explore the fascinating world of synthetic biology together.

During the Lab Fun Fair, participants conducted hands-on experiments such as measuring the pH and sugar content of grapes, while also operating equipment like homogenizers and centrifuges. For many, it was their very first time stepping into a laboratory and experiencing scientific experiments firsthand. “I had only seen these instruments in textbooks before—being able to actually use them today was so exciting!” said several Chinese students. The activity not only made knowledge come alive but also further fueled everyone’s passion for science.

In casual discussions, students even compared the price of lychees in their home countries, discovering that costs could vary dramatically—from Germany to Australia, reaching as high as 213 RMB per kilogram. These cross-cultural exchanges naturally underscored the international relevance of our project. At the end of the event, Edison from the U.S. remarked: “This experiment gave me a deeper understanding of synthetic biology—it was truly fascinating!” Meanwhile, Jakob Lessing from Germany praised the project’s creativity and practical value with great enthusiasm.

Every participant also received a souvenir, which many international students said not only helped them better understand the iGEM competition but also inspired them to further engage with synthetic biology. This event showcased our team’s strong organizational capacity and influence, while building a meaningful bridge for cross-cultural science education.

PLACE MISSION L——Treasure founding ​

Qiqi organized an interactive treasure hunt that combined Chinese lychee culture with our synthetic biology project.

Five cards featuring lychee-related knowledge and synthetic biology concepts were hidden around the campus. Participants searched for them using clues posted on our WeChat and Instagram accounts.

Winners could redeem lychee-themed cultural products at our SynBio booth.

This playful and innovative activity attracted many students and visitors, raised awareness of our lychee preservation project, and showed how science education can be both creative and engaging.

Educational Cards from PLACE Mission L

During the treasure hunt, participants collected educational cards covering key synthetic biology concepts. Each card introduces an important topic in an accessible and engaging way:

Word Game ​

Word Search Game

This is a synthetic biology - themed word search game. Players need to find specific words related to synthetic biology, such as melatonin, serotonin and so on, from a grid of letters. What's interesting is that words can be found not only horizontally or vertically but also diagonally, which adds a layer of challenge and fun. It helps players become familiar with important terms in synthetic biology while training their observation and concentration skills.

At first, Qiqi just listed the words to find. Later, on her advisor's suggestion, she turned the words to find into a paragraph related to iGEM and our project. This not only adds fun but also enables participants to gain a deeper understanding of iGEM and synthetic biology when reading this paragraph.

Crossword Puzzle

It's a special edition word - filling game launched by the 2025 HKUST - GZ iGEM team. Players first complete given sentences, and then use the words obtained from the sentences to fill in the corresponding numbered positions in the crossword - like grid. The game is closely related to the team's lychee preservation project and synthetic biology knowledge. Through this process, players can consolidate their understanding of core synthetic biology concepts and enhance their logical thinking, context comprehension, and knowledge transfer abilities.

Notably, Qiqi embedded logos containing the letters "I G E M" into the graphic design as hints to strengthen the promotion of the iGEM competition. Meanwhile, in the supplementary sentences of the fill-in-the-blank game, all statements closely focus on synthetic biology knowledge and the content of her project — this means that participants can naturally deepen their cognition and understanding of synthetic biology and our project in the process of completing the game.

Feedback

"This game is really interesting! It allowed me to learn some knowledge while playing.""This game gave me a preliminary understanding of the lychee preservation project, making it easier for me to find the parts I am interested in and gain a deeper understanding of other information related to this project."

Qiqi was very happy and continuously improved and refined the game based on participants' suggestions, such as adding project-related information and integrating questions more effectively.

Meanwhile, most of the students who had played the game gave positive feedback on it, and it is a game with distinct project characteristics.

Lychee Adventure ​

To vividly and effectively promote the cutting-edge scientific field of synthetic biology to the public, Qiqi designed and developed a board game. This game centers on the complete lychee industry chain, dynamically simulating the entire process from harvesting in the fields to meticulous preservation, long-distance transportation, and finally, completing sales at a supermarket.

This game is more than just entertainment; it is a powerful educational tool. In the game, players take on the role of a "lychee merchant" with a challenging spirit, personally experiencing the decisions and challenges of each step. Qiqi cleverly integrated the core concepts and technological applications of synthetic biology into interactive segments such as "special events" and "fun quizzes on synthetic biology."

This innovative model, which combines complex scientific knowledge with an immersive gaming experience, significantly lowers the cognitive barrier for the public. It allows players to enjoy the fun and strategic pleasure of the game while unconsciously understanding and grasping the fundamental concepts of synthetic biology. This approach has achieved remarkable results, successfully sparking a strong interest and desire for exploration in synthetic biology among a wider audience, especially young people, paving a new and engaging path for the popularization of scientific knowledge.