Overview

Shanghai-SDG is dedicated to tackling the challenge of caffeine phytotoxicity in spent coffee grounds (SCG) through synthetic biology to enable their use as biofertilizers. However, we believe a truly meaningful solution must extend beyond the lab bench and engage the general public. Given that the knowledge and principles of synthetic biology are rather advanced for the general public, we have decided to adopt a more accessible approach. This includes producing a wide range of merchandise and materials for daily distribution to gradually raise awareness, or using coffee—a familiar everyday product—as an entry point to bring synthetic biology into every household.

We designed a comprehensive education program guided by two principles:

​ ○ Mutual Learning – fostering two-way dialogue and listening to public values.

​ ○ Inclusiveness – reaching across different age groups and social backgrounds.

Through a range of creative, interactive, and people-oriented activities, we engaged children, teenagers, adults, the elderly, and communities, inviting them not only to learn science but to actively participate in shaping the narrative of synthetic biology.

Creative Dissemination

1. Abundant Project Merchandise

To reach a broader audience, we designed creative merchandise, including stickers, display stands, canvas bags, and eco-themed accessories, which visually represented our project identity. These merchandise items serve as prizes for our education activities and are also distributed at over 30 schools and cafes. Our original intention was to create entry points for informal science conversations, particularly targeting younger audiences—who strongly resonate with visual and lifestyle elements.

These merchandise items help extend the impact of our events beyond the activities themselves. For instance, many students often stick the stickers on their laptops, notebooks, or water bottles, keeping our project visible in their daily lives.

2. Children’s Picture Book

We firmly believe that children are not just passive recipients of knowledge but are the principal architects of our future. We also recognized that traditional, lecture-based approaches are often ineffective and disengaging for young minds. Instead of simply telling them synthetic biology knowledge, we sought to spark their imagination and curiosity.

This led us to create our cornerstone education resource—a picture book named Amazing Spent Coffee Grounds.

This book is thoughtfully designed to explore the world of synthetic biology through a child's perspective. We ditched obscure jargon in favor of vivid illustrations, captivating storytelling, and relatable analogies. By personifying the engineered E. coli as helpful "caffeine cleaners", we make this complex concept accessible.

Given the existing disparities in educational standards between urban and rural areas, we have distributed these books to children in remote mountainous schools across five provinces (Hebei, Shanxi, Ningxia, Tianjin, and Yunnan), directly benefiting over 200 young learners. This initiative represents our proactive effort to bridge the educational gap and promote educational equity.

Outcomes:

​ ● For many of these schools, our picture book was the first synthetic biology material available to students.

​ ● It is a tangible, durable educational tool that teachers can use for years to come.

3. Posters & Outreach Materials

We believe science education should proactively integrate into people's daily lives, sparking interest through subtle influence. To this end, we designed and distributed a series of customized posters and flyers for public spaces, transforming communities, schools, and cafes into ubiquitous "science classrooms".

Our outreach materials are customized according to the different characteristics of the space. In schools, posters emphasize the fundamental principles and future potential of synthetic biology to ignite students' scientific curiosity; At community centers and bulletin boards, we highlight the practical value of repurposing coffee grounds and everyday eco-friendly concepts, using language that resonates with residents; In partner cafes, posters directly connect to the coffee in customers' hands, telling the complete story from cup to green cycle.

Each piece of material does more than convey information—it includes a clear call to action. Our goal is to transform passive information recipients into active explorers.

Youth & Children Engagement

Engaging young people is at the heart of our education strategy. Adolescents and children are at a critical stage of growth, and we hope science can serve as the core inspiration for them during this period. We carefully designed activities that were not only fun and interactive, but also helped them build curiosity, confidence, and critical thinking about synthetic biology.

4. Youth Workshop — Community College Trilogy (1)

Activity Description:

This session was the first in a three-part collaboration with a local community college in Shanghai, where we designed workshops for youth, adults, and the elderly. In the youth session, we introduced basic concepts of synthetic biology and our project through a lively game of "Act and Guess"—team members acted out scientific terms like "DNA", "gene editing", and students guessed the answers. This playful approach lowered the barrier to science learning and sparked curiosity. Afterward, students built their own eco-bottles inside recycled coffee cups, layering materials such as sand, soil, moss, and plants. The activity linked synthetic biology to ecology and environmental sustainability, making science both engaging and tangible.

We deliberately combined a charades-style guessing game and a DIY activity to maximize engagement with young learners. Many middle-school students often perceive biology as abstract memorization; by adding acting, guessing, and crafting, we provided multiple entry points for different learning styles.

Outcomes:

​ ● 90% of students learned new biology vocabulary through the game, and their recall improved when asked at the end of the course.

​ ● The eco-bottles became take-home educational models, encouraging students to continue discussions with their families.

​ ● We also interviewed several students after class and compiled their thoughts and reflections into a handbook, serving both as a permanent record of this event and as a valuable resource for future community workshops.

5. Summer Camp Course

Activity Description:

As part of a summer camp for primary school children, we designed a special biology course introducing the fundamentals of life science. Our lesson covered the structure of cells, the role of DNA, the four bases (A, T, C, G), the central dogma, and the function of RNA. While these topics are often considered too advanced for younger students, we adapted them into age-appropriate language and analogies.

After the lecture, we divided the children into small groups for discussion. Each group was given guiding questions such as: "Why does every person look different if everyone has DNA?" and "What might happen if DNA letters changed?" Our team members sat with the groups to answer their questions and encourage curiosity. The session ended with students sharing their insights on stage, creating a lively peer-to-peer exchange.This combination of lectures and discussions fosters critical thinking among students. Group discussions also encourage them to voice their opinions more confidently, creating a dialogue-oriented atmosphere.

Outcomes:

​ ● Over 30 children (ages 8–12) participated in the workshop.

​ ● Children raised thoughtful questions, including: "Why is everyone’s DNA different?", and "Do plants also have DNA like us?"

​ ● We interviewed the children after class to assess their understanding of the content and compiled their understandings and imaginings of DNA (see image below).

6. Synthetic Biology × Sustainability Dialogue

Activity Description:

We hosted a workshop at Shanghai STEMHUB on synthetic biology's role in advancing sustainable development. We collaborated with three other iGEM teams, each sharing how their projects address distinct sustainability challenges through synthetic biology approaches. We also invited over 30 high school students to join our workshop, where we served as their technical advisory team.

We used the "Problem Tree" analysis method to guide the audience:

​ ● Roots (core problem): coffee grounds pollute the environment.

​ ● Trunk (direct causes): caffeine inhibits plant growth.

​ ● Branches (current solutions): physical, chemical, composting, and synthetic biology methods.

​ ● Leaves (challenges & innovation): encouraging the audience to reflect on each method’s strengths and limitations (e.g., cost, efficiency, safety).

Following our presentation, we invited participants to list one most attractive advantage and one biggest concern for our solution. We then transitioned to the Kahoot! platform—which we aimed to utilize as a "reflection platform"—to facilitate discussion through a series of questions addressing sustainability, application ethics, and trade-offs in technology selection.

Finally, we welcome interested participants to freely form teams, engage in discussions around their preferred sustainable development topics, and prepare a five-page PowerPoint presentation for sharing. Our iGEM team will be responsible for answering questions and listening to and documenting innovative ideas proposed by the public.

Outcomes:

​ ● We received a series of appreciations for our project's strengths, along with some concerns raised (see the two images below). We addressed each point individually. For issues that remain unresolved at this time, we have incorporated them as areas for future consideration in our project planning.

​ ● Kahoot survey results indicate extremely high engagement, with over 85% of participants expressing willingness to consume vegetables grown using synthetic biology fertilizers. However, some participants also raised concerns about synthetic biology, such as the risk of misuse.

​ ● 8 particularly motivated students self-organized into two small groups to explore sustainability topics of their choice.

7. Campus Roadshow — From Shanghai to Japan

Activity Description:

We organized two school lectures to introduce our project, one at a high school in Shanghai and another in Japan. By using the familiar example of coffee, we showed how a daily beverage can generate waste that harms the environment—and how synthetic biology could offer innovative recycling solutions. We connected biology to the students’ daily lives and asked simple, relatable questions: "Does your family drink coffee? How do you handle the grounds afterward?" and "If genes can be edited, could they help us recycle waste?". This framing allowed students from two different cultural contexts to reflect on the same problem in their own ways.

Outcomes:

​ ● Around 190 high school students in total participated (about 120 in Shanghai and 70 in Japan).

​ ● We distributed sticky notes at both schools, where students wrote down one new fact they learned and one question they still had. These were later compiled into a "Campus Talk Snapshot" (see below).

​ ● By comparing the questions raised by students from both countries, we found that they have different areas of focus:

​ ○ Shanghai students highlighted environmental concerns, asking how synthetic biology could be scaled to handle city waste.

​ ○ Japanese students emphasized food safety and acceptance, asking whether farmers and consumers would trust bioengineered fertilizer.

Public & Community

Unlike children, who are driven mainly by curiosity, adults often look for practical relevance and tangible benefits in new knowledge. We therefore designed activities that combined everyday usefulness with scientific depth, ensuring that participants not only gained new skills but also engaged in reflective conversations about synthetic biology.

8. Adult Workshop — Community College Trilogy (2)

Activity Description:

This was the second workshop of our three-part collaboration with a Shanghai community college, this time designed for local adults. We began the session by introducing our project: tackling the phytotoxicity of coffee grounds caused by caffeine, which prevents their direct use as fertilizer. After the explanation, we invited participants to explore the physical reuse of coffee grounds by making deodorizing sachets and handmade soap. These crafts served as an accessible entry point to understand that "waste has value".

To deepen engagement, we posed a discussion scenario:

"What do you think is the difference in value between using coffee grounds in physical products, like the soap you just made, and using gene-engineered microbes to detoxify them for fertilizer?"

This guided participants to reflect not only on immediate usability, but also on long-term sustainability and innovation.

Outcomes:

​ ● Every participant made at least one deodorizing sachet and handmade soap, and most took them home for continued use.

​ ● Several participants stated that this activity helped them "see science not just as abstract theory, but as choices that affect daily life".

9. Shanghai Symbiosis Summit

Activity Description:

We joined the second annual Shanghai Symbiosis Summit, a cross-school academic platform jointly organized by nine local high schools. The event brought together experts, iGEM teams, students from elementary to high school, and their parents. Each team set up a booth where visitors could participate in interactive science activities and collect stamps on their activity handbook.

The summit audience was diverse so we chose an art-based activity because it transcends age and background—everyone can draw, and everyone enjoys creating. At our booth, we designed an activity called "Coffee Grounds Sand Painting". Participants used dried coffee grounds to create simple sand paintings, while learning about the multiple applications of coffee grounds—from deodorizing and soap-making to fertilizer potential.

Outcomes:

​ ● We distributed over 120 stamps, and more than 150 visitors stopped by our booth, indicating a high level of visitor engagement.

​ ● The paintings served as take-home artifacts, reminding participants of the science message even after the event.

10. Community Booth

Activity Description:

We set up a booth in a Shanghai community square to connect with residents in a casual and approachable way. The booth offered free bags of dried coffee grounds, each packaged with some educational materials. Recognizing that community residents have diverse interests and aiming to engage residents of all ages, we offered multiple educational materials:

​ ○ Project flyers explaining our iGEM research and the challenge of caffeine toxicity.

​ ○ Team-designed merchandise (stickers, canva bags) distributed as small rewards.

​ ○ Children’s picture books are gifted to families with young children, encouraging parents to continue science conversations at home.

To spark interaction, we also prepared a "True or False" quiz about coffee grounds and synthetic biology. Residents could answer simple questions like "Coffee grounds can be directly used as fertilizer?" and "Synthetic biology can help remove caffeine from waste?" to earn a small prize. This design ensured even short exchanges could become moments of learning.

Outcomes:

​ ● We distributed over 50 bags of coffee grounds, 80 flyers, 40 pieces of merchandise, and 20 children’s picture books in one morning.

​ ● 30 residents participated in the "True or False" quiz, which helped identify common misconceptions (e.g., the belief that coffee grounds can directly fertilize plants).

​ ● From the Q&A sessions, we compiled a Community Q&A Sheet documenting frequently asked questions and our responses.

Question from Residents	Our Answer	Educational Message
Can coffee grounds be directly used as fertilizer?	❌ No, caffeine harms plant growth. Our iGEM project works on removing this barrier.	Synthetic biology solves the phytotoxicity in SCG.
Why do coffee grounds smell so strong? Can the smell be useful?	✅ Yes, T\the smell absorbs odors, making them natural deodorizers.	Everyday waste can be reused in households.
Are handmade soaps with coffee grounds safe for skin?	✅ Yes, when processed properly, coffee acts as a natural exfoliant.	Waste-to-product innovations can link science with lifestyle.
How does synthetic biology come into this?	We engineer microbes that detoxify caffeine, enabling safe fertilizer.	Explains why biology solutions differ from physical reuse.
Can coffee grounds be reused for other purposes?	✅ Yes, such as deodorizing, composting and cleaning.	Waste has multiple pathways of value.
Is it safe to eat food grown with bioengineered fertilizer?	✅ Yes, detoxified fertilizer is safe.	Public trust is key for applying synthetic biology.
How can I try something at home?	Use coffee grounds for deodorizing or DIY scrub, but avoid direct plant use.	Bridges daily practice with scientific understanding.

Elderly Engagement

Our education strategy did not stop with young people. We also believed it was essential to include elderly residents, ensuring that no age group is left behind in the rapidly changing world of science and technology. Too often, science education overlooks the elderly, yet they are central figures in families and communities. By bringing synthetic biology into their familiar context, we provided them with both new knowledge and a sense of belonging in the conversation about the future.

11. Gardening Workshop — Community College Trilogy (3)

Activity Description:

As the final session in our three-part collaboration with a Shanghai community college, we designed a workshop specifically for elderly residents. Many of them already enjoy gardening, so we chose this familiar hobby as a natural entry point for discussing our project. This workshop combined practical planting tips with a fertilizer quiz game, where participants judged whether common household items such as rice-washing water, fish tank water, and egg liquid could serve as fertilizers.

After the game, we introduced our iGEM project, highlighting how synthetic biology can transform coffee grounds from chemically harmful waste into safe and valuable fertilizer. This linked their daily gardening interests to larger sustainability goals. We encouraged them to become initiators, co-creators, advocates, and contributors in building a local coffee grounds recycling chain. They signed an environmental pledge, affirming their role as participants in sustainable practices.

Outcomes:

​ ● The fertilizer quiz revealed that many had misconceptions (e.g., several believed rice-washing water was always a safe fertilizer), giving us an opportunity to correct these ideas.

​ ● 20 participants signed the pledge, committing to support coffee grounds recycling and share what they learned with family members.

Statement	Answer	Explanation
Rice-washing water can be used directly as fertilizer.	❌ False	While rice water contains nutrients, if not fermented properly it can sour and harm plant roots.
Fish tank water is a good fertilizer for plants.	✅ True	Fish waste provides nitrogen and other nutrients; it is a gentle organic fertilizer.
Egg liquid can be poured directly into soil to nourish plants.	❌ False	Raw egg liquid rots quickly, attracting pests and creating odors.
Banana peels can be composted as fertilizer.	✅ True	When properly composted, banana peels release potassium and phosphorus, which support flowering and fruiting.
Quicklime is good for plants because it improves soil.	❌ False	Quicklime reduces soil acidity but can harm plants if used excessively. It must be applied carefully.
Using household organic waste as fertilizer always helps plants grow better.	❌ False	Some wastes contain harmful substances (e.g., salt, oil, caffeine). They need treatment before use.

Cross-Disciplinary Dialogue & Digital Platforms

12. Debate: Is Synthetic Biology a Friend or Foe for Food Security?

Activity Description:

In collaboration with a professional English debate institution, we co-hosted a public debate on the topic "Is synthetic biology a friend or foe for food security?". The event gathered an audience that included students, teachers, parents, and even international visitors, making it an unusually diverse dialogue platform.

This debate featured our own iGEM team members and students from the institution, who formed the affirmative and negative sides respectively. The pro side emphasized the potential of genetic tools to enhance crop resilience, reduce waste, and improve sustainability. The con side raised issues of biosafety, governance, and socio-economic inequality. The audience was not only watching but also engaged in pre- and post-debate voting, which helped reveal shifts in public perception.

This event has established a cross-cultural, interdisciplinary platform where synthetic biology is no longer an abstract concept but a vibrant, controversial topic. We encourage open discussion and invite the public to join us in exploring these ideas.

Outcomes:

​ ● Approximately 60 participants took part, and the results of the pre- and post-surveys showed: support for "friend" rose from 59% to 78%, showing how exposure to structured arguments can reshape opinions.

​ ● We summarized the arguments, evidence, and key points of consensus presented by both sides, compiling them into a debate report.

13. Online Live Broadcasts

Activity Description:

In order to showcase synthetic biology to a broader audience and highlight its diverse applications, we co-organized an online outreach series titled "Circle of LIVE" together with four other iGEM teams. The program was structured around two main themes—Contribution and Wellness—and divided into five interconnected "rings": animal, human, society, environment, and resource contribution. Each team acted as the anchor for one of the rings, bringing their unique project perspective into the larger circle.

Our team contributed to the resource contribution segment under the "Contribution" theme. We introduced the role of synthetic biology in sustainable agriculture, using our coffee ground detoxification project as a vivid case study. By linking the abstract concept of "resource cycles" to a tangible waste-to-value pathway, we demonstrated how synthetic biology can turn everyday waste into an opportunity for sustainable community development.

Outcomes:

​ ● Two live sessions attracted a combined total of 880 viewers, with audiences tuning in from different regions and backgrounds.

​ ● A viewer expressed interest in projects that turn waste into treasure, while another view mentioned that many people use coffee grounds for planting flowers. These comments show that participants were connecting our scientific explanation with their everyday practices and prior knowledge.

14. Smashing Synthetic Biology Rumours

Activity Description:

As part of a broader international effort to address misconceptions about synthetic biology, we were invited to contribute to the "Smashing Synthetic Biology Rumours" handbook—a collaborative work that compiled clarifications from 33 iGEM teams. Our role was to write and fact-check one rumors, providing a clear, accessible explanation grounded in scientific evidence.

Outcomes:

​ ● The handbook was shared widely in communities and schools, reaching 500 viewers.

​ ● We also uploaded the handbook on our team wiki, ensuring that future iGEM teams, educators, and the general public can freely access and build upon this resource.

15. Social Media

Activity Description:

To reach broader audiences, we designed a series of short, visually appealing posts under the theme "Cold Knowledge". Each post introduced one surprising or counterintuitive fact about synthetic biology. Topics included:

​ ○ The simplest form of life ever created by humans?

​ ○ How can synthetic biology help determine a suspect's guilt?

​ ○ Can bacteria become "microbombs" to destroy cancer cells?

We published the series on platforms such as Xiaohongshu and Instagram, targeting younger audiences who are active on these channels but may have little prior exposure to synthetic biology.

Outcomes:

​ ● online viewers included students, professionals, and parents—demonstrating the power of digital media to cross age and social boundaries.

​ ● By packaging synthetic biology in a lightweight, curiosity-driven format, we lowered the entry barrier for non-specialist audiences.

Conclusion

Our education journey this year was about more than outreach—it was about building two-way dialogue. From children to adults to the elderly, we designed activities that met each group where they are, making synthetic biology approachable, relevant, and engaging.

Through workshops, debates, digital platforms, and creative materials, we transformed science into everyday conversations. By compiling booklets, FAQs, and handbooks and uploading them to our wiki, we ensured that our work will remain a resource for future teams and the wider public.

Education, for us, means co-creating understanding. By inviting diverse voices to share, question, and reflect, we helped make synthetic biology a field shaped not only by scientists, but by general public.