In our mission to integrate the public into our project, we believe in a two-way street: not only do we want to hear their input, but we also want to empower them with knowledge. With so many fascinating topics to explore, we've focused our education efforts on two key areas. Use the slider below to learn more about our educational efforts in Synthetic Biology and STI Awareness.
"Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today."
~ Malcolm X
As children, we all dream of changing the world, but as we get older, those dreams often feel less tangible. Synthetic biology, however, offers a powerful tool to turn those ambitious visions into reality. Our iGEM project represents a chance to do just that, but we've noticed a disconnect: many students, especially in Switzerland, don't learn about this field early enough to consider it for their future.
We were fortunate to have teachers who ignited our passion for synthetic biology, shaping our career paths. We believe this opportunity should be available to everyone, not just those with interested educators. It's our responsibility as scientists to keep this spark alive. That’s why our team decided to take matters into our own hands and bridge the gap between childhood fantasy and real-world scientific application.
We designed and delivered a series of workshops. In a collaboration with the Wyss Foundation and the ETH Zurich team, we participated in the annual BioSTARS summer camp. We spent an entire day with high school students, giving them hands-on experience with core synthetic biology techniques like PCR and gel electrophoresis. We also visited various Swiss schools, creating two distinct lessons for students on different academic tracks - one for secondary schools and another for high schools. By collaborating with teachers, we ensured our lectures fit seamlessly into the student’s curriculum, adding valuable new perspectives. To ensure our work has a lasting impact, all our educational materials are provided for future iGEM teams to use, accessible through the links below.
23 July 2025
ETH Zurich Hönggerberg, HCI lab
16-18 years old
20 highschool students
The theory of PCR and gel electrophoresis, both applied to a made up crime story that let them find out who the robber is.
They had the opportunity to get hands-on practice in the lab:
Confirmation of our anticipations:
23 July 2025
ETH Zurich Hönggerberg, HCI lab
16-18 years old
20 highschool students
We learned that by simplifying biological principles through everyday analogies, even people with little prior knowledge of biology can grasp essential concepts such as the central dogma. We presented the kids with two examples of applications of synthetic biology to give them an insight into what can be achieved using fundamental knowledge. Afterwards, we encouraged them to brainstorm problems that could potentially be solved by applying similar methods as in the examples. However, we also realized that presenting more than one example can be counterproductive, as it may confuse the students when the basic concepts are not yet fully internalized. In retrospect, it would have been more effective to provide just a single example.
01 October 2025
Zurich, Kantonsschule Wiedikon
17 - 18 years old
17 highschool students
The students weren’t the only ones who learned something during our presentation. Through an interactive discussion about which problems they would tackle if they participated in iGEM, we gained valuable new perspectives and heard creative solutions to issues we hadn’t previously considered. Mr. Hefti-Gautschi also shared helpful didactic strategies with us, which will improve our performance in future school visits. Although our second real life example led to some confusion, this experience showed us the importance of presenting examples that we can explain comprehensively and confidently, including all relevant details.
Together with Studentbiolab and Max from the iGEM 2025 ETH Zurich Team, we participated in the Sustainability Week with one workshop about GMOs. We held a lecture about the current Swiss politics regarding GMOs and we held an open discussion where participants were asked to imagine how they can contribute to sustainability with modern research, just like synthetic biology and iGEM.
We participated in the two days of the semesterly Activity Fair at University of Zurich. It's an opportunity for students to learn about student associations and extracurricular activities - such as iGEM. Although it's hosted at University of Zurich, there were a lot of ETH Zurich students present as well.
It gave us the opportunity to promote our survey, learn about our project and motivate people to join activities around synthetic biology such as iGEM. It was there that we spoke to a lot of people who were really excited by our project and how we tackle the problem of STIs.
While creating an accessible at-home test is crucial, it doesn't solve the whole problem. A key finding from our research is that many at-risk individuals underestimate the danger of STIs. Our survey showed similar results. This is why a central part of our Human Practices work was to launch a campaign that not only educates but also empowers people to take control of their sexual health. We believe that raising awareness is just as vital as our scientific work.
Here's a look at how we used various platforms to spark conversations and promote testing:
There are also less obvious ways in which we contributed to raising awareness and promoting testing. To ensure that our test helps build knowledge about STIs and thereby reduces stigma, we designed a webpage with essential information about each STI, explanations of test results, and suggestions for next steps. More details about this user interface can be found on our Product Page.
Additionally, we supported the normalization of the topic through our survey: 417 people started it, and 301 completed it. By reflecting on their current testing behavior and their expectations for a self-test, participants engaged closely with the topic.
To see the full posts, visit our Instagram Account.
It’s time for some STI myth-busting💥 Can you guess what’s true and what’s not?
September 4th is World Sexual Health Day! To celebrate, we’ll be sharing informative posts about STIs — plus a special surprise on the day itself! Stay tuned 🌟
The information for this post were taken from the following sources:
👉 Broadgate GP Clinic: https://www.broadgategp.co.uk/stis-testing-the-common-myths/
👉 Rush University Medical Center: https://www.rush.edu/news/6-surprising-facts-about-stds
Getting tested isn’t always as easy as it should be. That’s exactly why we’re working on our project — to make STI testing easier, faster, and more accessible for everyone. 💙👥
The information for this post were taken from the following sources:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28664644/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20444177/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35725437/
Happy World Sexual Health Day! 🌍💙
Sexual health isn’t just about treatment. It's about confidence, safety, and care. That’s why we’re working on a test that makes invisible infections visible. Because when you know, you can take control. ✨
Yesterday was World Sexual Health Day 🎉Today, we’re keeping the conversation going, with a focus on HIV & AIDS ❤️🩹
Want to know when to test, what symptoms to look out for, and how to protect yourself and others? We’ve got you covered. Let’s talk facts, not fear and take charge of our health together. 💬💪
The information for this post were taken from the following sources:
👉 Bundesministerium für Gesundheit: HIV und AIDS | BMG
👉 Apotheken Umschau: HIV und Aids: Symptome, Behandlung und Prävention | Apotheken Umschau
We designed a poster that lets people question their testing behaviour and inform them about potential risks and possibilities to look after their sexual health.
Throughout our project, we were able to spark meaningful conversations about sexual health. The feedback we received from the public through conversations at the activity fair and through our survey was overwhelmingly positive, underlining both the importance of our project and the relevance of the topic itself.
A few examples from our survey, where respondents had the opportunity to share feedback in the final question:
“I think accessible, affordable STI tests are a must! So many more people would test themselves, including myself.”
“I would like to express my appreciation to the project group. A very important topic!” (Translated from German)
“I think this is an incredibly important topic, and it’s awesome that you’re addressing it! Great idea!!🫶🏼” (Translated from Swiss German)
~ Anonymous, from our Survey
We also raised more subtle awareness through our posters. We observed many people stopping in front of them, reading carefully and engaging silently with the content.
Based on the feedback we received during our project and through our awareness campaign, we gained the impression that the need for STI awareness is even greater than we initially expected. The topic affects many people, yet, as our survey confirmed, knowledge about it remains limited—even within the context of a university well known for its strong focus on biology, where one might assume STI awareness would already be high.
Our campaign was a success due to the positive feedback we got and the 417 people that opened our survey. But it also revealed how much more still needs to be done to ensure that this topic receives the attention it deserves. We primarily focused our outreach on university and high school settings, and we are proud to have contributed to raising awareness and empowering people with knowledge to act safely regarding their sexual health. However,limited awareness and knowledge remain a pressing issue, and we hope that in the future, self-tests like ours can help push the conversation in the right direction.