Education

Introduction

The core theme of this Education activity is to promote two cutting-edge scientific fields: synthetic biology and healthy sugar substitutes. It focuses on enhancing the public's (especially teenagers') understanding of the practical application value of synthetic biology and the health significance of sugar substitutes. By adopting an online-offline integrated model, we strive to maximize the communication effect of scientific knowledge.

In terms of activity formats, we have built a "online + offline" dual-track system: Online, we rely on multiple social platforms such as Xiaohongshu, Douyin, and Twitter to conduct content dissemination and interactive communication, expanding the activity's influence; Offline, we advance in multiple dimensions, organizing activities that accurately reach targeted groups (such as exchange meetings for synthetic biology enthusiasts, campus lectures, and club promotion) as well as popular science activities for the general public (including public science popularization and community promotion).

The specific activity content is rich and diverse: On online platforms, we continuously release video content such as team introductions and laboratory daily routines, simultaneously launch survey questionnaires, and conduct academic exchanges with relevant teams around the world; Offline, we held an opening ceremony speech (sharing details of the iGEM project and experiments) and a club expo (promoting the club and recruiting members) at Hangzhou Olive Tree School; designed a puzzle game and a banana DNA extraction experiment for popular science at Hangzhou Low-Carbon Science and Technology Museum; and distributed promotional materials in communities and schools in Hangzhou and Ningbo. In mid-July, we further co-hosted two exchange meetings with biology enthusiasts to share our project achievements and promote synthetic biology knowledge. Meanwhile, we have created a systematic support system for activity materials, covering promotional materials (PPT courseware, thematic posters, promotion brochures, leaflets, project videos), interactive materials (game props, DNA extraction experiment equipment), peripheral products (stickers, keychains, standing cards, and badges designed based on the original IP "Xiao Qiongju"), and core visual identity (the team logo integrating olive branches, DNA double helix, and sugar molecule structure), providing strong support for the implementation of various activities.

Through the implementation of this series of activities, we hope not only to enable more people to gain in-depth understanding of the fields of synthetic biology and healthy sugar substitutes, and stimulate teenagers' interest in cutting-edge science, but also to build a bridge for scientific communication and exchange, promote the popularization of knowledge in relevant fields, and help create a positive atmosphere of paying attention to science and loving science

Online Promotion

Education on Several Popular Social Platforms

Purpose: The social media promotion activities are of great significance: First, they can popularize knowledge about the hazards of excessive sugar intake, the iGEM competition and synthetic biology, and stimulate the public's interest in and understanding of this field; Second, they can build interest communities, accumulate potential forces through interaction, connect peers around the world, promote academic exchanges and knowledge sharing, contribute to scientific progress in the long run, and cultivate potential participants in this field.

We have established accounts on multiple social media platforms, including Xiaohongshu, Tiktok, and Twitter. Our goal is to further expand the team’s influence through the internet, helping more people understand the hazards of excessive sugar intake, our ongoing project, the iGEM competition, and synthetic biology.

On these platforms, we have shared videos such as team member introductions, lab daily routines, and promotional content. Additionally, we distributed a questionnaire we designed on Xiaohongshu, which allowed us to collect a large amount of data and feedback from people around the world. To date, we have gained over 100 followers and more than 450 likes and saves.

We have also engaged in global exchanges with other teams: for example, we connected with the WLSA Shanghai team on Xiaohongshu, shared our research results with them, and participated in academic exchanges together. Through Twitter, we introduced our high school team from Hangzhou Olive Tree School to overseas netizens and universities (e.g., the University of Tokyo, the University of Cambridge). Meanwhile, we have received comments, including questions related to the competition.

Through this series of social media operations, we have not only expanded the team’s influence but also sparked the public’s curiosity about synthetic biology. As the number of followers continues to grow, discussions and inquiries about the iGEM competition and project details have increased. This positive interaction has helped us gradually build an interest community that supports the team, and more people have shown a willingness to participate in this field or gain a deeper understanding of the future development of synthetic biology.

Summary: Ultimately, through the strategic use of social media platforms, we have successfully expanded the project’s influence. By creating content that is educational, engaging, and interactive, we have effectively raised public awareness of synthetic biology, connected with like-minded individuals, and significantly increased public interest in our technological innovation project. We look forward to inspiring more people to participate in this field and jointly promote scientific progress through continuous efforts.

Offline Activities

Communication with Synthetic Biology Enthusiasts

Purpose: This event is aimed at synthetic biology enthusiasts. By sharing our project and exchanging experiences, we aim to expand the influence of both synthetic biology and our own project.

In mid-July, we co-hosted two exchange sessions with two iGEM teams and biology enthusiasts. Three members of our team introduced and shared our project, which was divided into five key parts: project background, reasons for topic selection, experimental design, market research summary, and future plans. This presentation not only refined the logic of our project but also served as excellent preparation for the finals in Paris.

Through this sharing, we also gained valuable insights from other teams. For instance, a team from Hangzhou focused on dyes and demonstrated how they conducted direct interviews with buyers during market research—this inspired us to incorporate such industry perspectives into our work. Meanwhile, a team from Wuxi had elegantly designed and technically sophisticated PPTs, making us realize that our own PPTs were relatively plain.

Summary: These two exchange sessions prompted us to think more deeply—for example, how to verify the safety of our product before it enters the market—and also advanced our market research activities.

Hangzhou Olive Tree School Opening Speech

Purpose: This event was targeted at over 500 teachers and students in the school. Its purpose was to share the iGEM project and popularize knowledge about synthetic biology and sugar substitutes. The expected outcomes were: enabling teachers and students to understand the project details, the iGEM competition, and the research and development of sugar substitutes, thereby expanding the influence of the project within the campus.

On September 1st, we shared our iGEM project with over 500 teachers and students at the school’s morning assembly. The PPT used for the presentation was revised from the one used in the July exchange sessions, focusing on two key sections: a detailed team introduction and an overview of our lab work during the summer vacation (including experimental details and mechanisms).

For the team section, we first introduced "who we are"—providing a brief introduction of team members and each person’s responsibilities. We then shared with students what iGEM is, the competition’s main features and goals, and our team’s objectives. Next, we moved on to our team’s theme for this year: sugar substitutes. After sharing the project’s background, thinking process, and reasons for selecting this topic—"to make better choices for health and the planet"—we delved into experimental details.

We explained the core process of our sugar substitute development in simple language: starting with the experimental process, key methods (such as PCR), followed by an easy-to-understand explanation of the experimental mechanism. We then described how we tested the substitute’s sweetness and low-glycemic properties through repeated experiments. To help the audience better understand, we displayed photos of our lab equipment and test samples. Finally, we shared our follow-up plans and social media QR codes, allowing students and teachers to gain a deeper understanding of project details, strengthen promotion efforts, and monitor our progress on an ongoing basis.

Summary: this educational speech not only disseminated knowledge and gave more students a basic understanding of synthetic biology but also strengthened cooperation among our team members—preparing for the assembly required close communication and joint efforts to refine our explanations.

Molecular Science Club

Purpose: This event was still targeted at the school's teachers and students. The purpose was to promote the team's sugar substitute research and this year's iGEM project at the club expo, and guide teachers and students to follow the team's social media accounts. The expected outcomes were: enabling teachers and students to gain an in-depth understanding of iGEM, synthetic biology and sugar substitute knowledge, stimulating students' interest, and recruiting new members for the team.

On the afternoon of September 4th, we promoted the club at the school’s club expo, a follow-up to the opening speech assembly. At our booth, we provided teachers and students with detailed information about our team’s sugar substitute research and this year’s iGEM project, guided them to follow our social media accounts, and distributed small gifts such as stickers and keychains. The booth attracted many people, and we were excited to see that many students attached our keychains to their schoolbags or stuck our stickers on their books.

During the expo, many teachers and students took the initiative to ask us about the principles of sugar substitute development and our future activity plans, and we answered each question in detail. Through 1-2 hours of interaction, more teachers and students gained a deeper understanding of iGEM and synthetic biology, sparking strong interest among many students and making our project promotion more appealing. We mainly introduced the project’s purpose and process, and provided a detailed explanation of the iGEM competition, hoping to bring new members into the team.

This event also brought together many partners interested in biology—we welcomed them to join us in exploring research topics and participating in this challenging iGEM competition, allowing more people to discover the fascinating mysteries of biochemistry beyond traditional biochemistry knowledge.

Summary: This was an excellent start for expanding horizons. We not only improved team members’ ability to express themselves and promote the project but also attracted many like-minded partners to join us in making progress and growing together. Overall, the recruitment drive was highly successful: many students began to pay attention to this innovative competition that breaks from tradition, and more people understood that our innovation is not for innovation’s sake.

Public Science Popularization Activity

Low-Carbon Hall Science Popularization Activities

Purpose: This event was targeted at children and their parents. Its purpose was to carry out public science popularization at the Hangzhou Low-Carbon Science and Technology Museum, popularize knowledge about synthetic biology and promote the team's sugar substitute project. The expected outcomes were: enabling participants to understand the role of the sugar substitute in reducing the health risks of excessive sugar intake and helping people with diabetes, stimulating their interest and expectations, and strengthening the team's determination to continue advancing the project.

On July 27th, our team visited the Hangzhou Low-Carbon Science and Technology Museum and carried out public science popularization activities targeting children and parents. During the activities, we not only designed a word puzzle game to help children gain a basic understanding of synthetic biology but also used this opportunity to promote our project. We also conducted a fun banana DNA extraction experiment with the participants.

By playing our project’s promotional video and providing on-site explanations, we shared further details—such as how our sugar substitute reduces health risks associated with excessive sugar intake and how it helps diabetics enjoy sweetness without worrying about blood sugar spikes. Many parents asked follow-up questions such as "When will this sugar substitute be available for daily use?" and expressed their hope for its early application. Their strong interest and positive expectations greatly encouraged us, strengthening our determination to continue advancing the project and turn our ideas into practical outcomes that benefit the public.

Activity Reflection: The on-site foot traffic far exceeded expectations, and the limited number of team members made it impossible to fully attend to every participant’s experience. In the future, we need to arrange more staff to improve service quality. Additionally, parents at the event offered suggestions for the project, hoping that we will pay more attention to the product’s application scope—specifically, they hoped our product could also be used to address children’s dental caries (tooth decay) issues.

Community Flyer Distribution

Purpose: This event was targeted at community residents, school teachers and students, as well as the public in Ningbo (a city adjacent to Hangzhou). Its purpose was to promote the team's iGEM healthy sugar substitute research project, popularize relevant knowledge, and expand the scale of promotion. The expected outcomes were: spreading project information, enabling more people to understand the team's project, the iGEM competition and synthetic biology, and collecting public opinions.

We produced some promotional leaflets and posters to introduce our project and synthetic biology, and distributed them in public places such as communities and schools to achieve a better promotion scale. It is worth mentioning that one of our team members carried out an offline leaflet distribution activity in Ningbo, which is another city near Hangzhou. The results were satisfying: all leaflets were successfully distributed, effectively spreading the information of our project and making more people aware of our efforts.

Summary: During the event, our team members also collected many opinions and suggestions from different groups. For example, some middle-aged residents asked about the safety of sugar substitutes, while young parents were concerned about the applicability of sugar substitutes in children's snacks. These valuable opinions not only helped us gain a broader understanding of the public's needs for our project, but also successfully made more people know about our school, the iGEM competition and synthetic biology.

Physical Merchandise and Materials

We designed our logo at the very beginning. Our logo features a vibrant shade of green, symbolizing the vigorous vitality of synthetic biology. On the left side, an olive branch—representative of OTIA—elegantly intertwines with a gear and the iconic DNA double helix. Inside the gear, the structure of sugar molecules is embedded. This integration reflects both the technological innovation of synthetic biology and the unity of our purpose-driven team, as well as iGEM’s core values of open collaboration and vision for a sustainable future.

In addition to the logo, we also have our own character IP—"Xiao Qiong Ju" (Little Chrysanthemum). Designed based on the raw materials of the enzymes we used, this IP also incorporates elements of iGEM and our school. We have turned this IP into various types of merchandise, including stickers, keychains, stand-up decorations, and badges.

These products aim to attract people, make it easier for the public to understand our project, and support promotion at events (such as club expos and science popularization activities).

Summary

This event focused on the fields of synthetic biology and healthy sugar substitutes, and established an "online + offline" dual-track promotion system. Online, it released team and experimental content on multiple social platforms, accumulating over 100 followers and more than 450 likes and saves, while also connecting with domestic and international teams for academic exchanges. Offline, it carried out activities such as exchange meetings for synthetic biology enthusiasts, campus lectures, interactive popular science events at science and technology museums, and leaflet distribution in communities and across cities, covering diverse groups including teachers and students, parent-child families, and community residents.

In terms of achievements, the event not only effectively raised the public's awareness of synthetic biology and healthy sugar substitutes, stimulated teenagers' interest in exploring cutting-edge science, but also collected feedback from different groups regarding the safety of sugar substitutes and their applicability to children. During the preparation and implementation of the event, the team's collaboration efficiency, project presentation skills, and problem-solving abilities were significantly improved. Meanwhile, it successfully recruited new members for the team and expanded the project's influence.

In terms of reflections, first, in addition to focusing on the application of sugar substitutes in preventing children's dental caries, it is necessary to supplement relevant research and popular science content to address the concerns of middle-aged and elderly groups about the safety of sugar substitutes. Second, offline activities such as leaflet distribution are relatively single in form; interactive experience sessions can be integrated to enhance the communication effect, thereby further improving the project direction and promotion strategies.