How to Print Out the Coloring Book
To print out both coloring books, right click on the coloring page you wish to print and click "open image on new tab". Next, if using the Chrome browser, click on the 3 vertical dots on the upper right corner to find the "Print" option.
Book Description
Our team decided to create an interactive coloring book, A Tale of Two Manatees, for children that tells a simplified story of starving Manatees located in the well-known region of Florida, the Indian River Lagoon. It follows two main characters, Montee and Manny, as they scavenge the sea for any food they can find, swimming for miles. Eventually their luck turns around and the humans, using synthetic biology, intervene to save them.
A Tale of Two Manatees includes a younger audience in such an important conversation surrounding eutrophication and does so in an easy to digest way. It allows for kids to actively follow along with the story, as well as develop questions towards the end that may pique their interest in synthetic biology. The hope with this educational approach is to get the younger generations interested or involved in solving real world problems, like harmful algal blooms.
The book was not made to serve as an all-around scientific explanation, but rather a gateway into the topic for a younger audience who may not have much knowledge on the subject yet. If the audience is interested in the specifics, they can dive deeper into the website to find all the details regarding our solution and how synthetic biology works.
The plot was written by Nicole Blanchard and the illustrations were drawn by Sophia Berkwits.
Outreach
To take our efforts to the next level, we coordinated events to share our project with the local community. Our goal is to educate the broader community about the nature of synthetic biology, and how it can help us solve problems. At the same time, we want the local communities to learn about our problem with HABs, and Florida’s manatee population decline.
First, we arranged presentations with students at the high school and elementary school level. We hope that targeting younger communities will have a stronger long-term impact. For example, we presented at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering during a summer camp. Not only did we share about our project, but also about iGEM as a whole, and how they can get involved in the process.
As a complement, we presented our work in an academic setting. We hosted presentations at Florida State University Innovation Hub. Here we presented our work to college students, university faculty, and local entrepreneurs. During this presentation our focus was the scientific data and methodology that we used in the creation of our project.
Special thanks to East Coast Biocrew for giving candid feedback regarding our illustrations and story line prior to the finialization.
Future Plans
Next, the team plans to present at Kate Sullivan Elementary School located in Tallahassee, Florida. Our presentation will focus on the larger issue that Florida’s ecosystem is facing. We will mention the different ways in which human intervention might be exacerbating the growth of harmful algae blooms. Then, we are looking to conduct a discussion with the students, where they share about personal experiences they may have had with algae blooms, and ways in which they think can help solve this problem.
Lastly, we are planning on competing in the InNOLEvation challenge - a competition at Florida State University College of Entrepreneurship for students to present a product and business plan. During this competition we will focus on the real-world application of our project, as well as the steps we plan to take to commercialize our efforts.