Team:Technion-Israel/Human Practices
Our Goal
Since we attribute great importance to the interaction between iGEM projects and the community, as well as reaching out to the industry, we wanted to involve people from various fields in different aspects of our project. This way, we do not only receive feedback by which we refine our project, but also influence the industry and educate the public, sparking inspiration and raising awareness regarding the environmental issue we wish to address. We pave the way towards innovative, sustainable food production in the future using the tools of synthetic biology, and hopefully to a "greener", more conscious society.
How did we achieve our goal?
Integrated Human Practice
While developing our product, it was important for us to receive professional feedback from the industry as well as from experts in academia. We have consulted with many people who have professionally assisted us in several ways. We have first contacted beekeepers and honey experts, consulted them regarding the honey production process, aiming to mimic the process. Later, we have contacted experts in the field of biochemistry, trying to apply the information we have gathered to our project. Simultaneously, we contacted relevant companies with which we collaborated to improve our ability to demonstrate our vision using their innovative products as well as to discuss future business opportunities.
Public Engagement
Our sustainable "BeeFree" honey aims to benefit the entire eco-system by preventing the harm done by the honey industry. Thus, we wish to engage the public and help them gain the knowledge and skills needed to build a “greener” world.
In addition to publicly presenting our project on various occasions, explaining its significance and raising awareness, we have also organized a two-day hackathon for local high school students, gathering the entrepreneurs of the future and encouraging them to try to come up with creative ideas to solve sustainability and environmental issues. During the hackathon, three lecturers presented their different fields of expertise and 21 experienced mentors guided the young teams and refined their projects. The students have gained a unique experience, taking the tools they received from the experts and applying them to their own ideas, some of them in the field of synthetic biology as well as the food industry.
The hackathon and the low participation rate of Israeli high-schools teams in iGEM in the past years, have inspired us to contact Haifa municipality to facilitate the participation of high-schools in the iGEM contest.
Lastly, we had started a Facebook challenge called "One Minute iGEM Challenge" to make the field of synthetic biology more accessible to the public.
