The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), set by the United Nations, serve as a blueprint to achieve a peaceful, conservation-focused future. As we were developing our project, we considered how we could best implement these SDGs. To us, the clear answer was to address a barrier to fieldability. Utilizing fieldable constructs will increase conservation efforts for both aquatic and terrestrial environments (addressing both the Life Below Water and Life on Land SDGs). In addition to having our software program help address SDGs, we wanted to incorporate the SDGs into other aspects of our project as well, including our educational and collaborative efforts. During the 2022 season, the SDGs impacted our (1) project design, (2) educational efforts, and (3) collaboration work. Through these different areas, we addressed the following SDGs: Goal Number 4: Quality Education, Goal Number 14: Life Below Water, Goal Number 15: Life on Land, and Goal Number 17: Partnerships to Achieve the Goal.
1. Project Design
Our team wanted to ensure that we incorporated several SDGs into our project design. From the beginning of the iGEM season, our team was interested in conservation, specifically in terms of bioremediation. Thus, addressing SDG Number 14: Life Below Water (“Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development) and SDG Number 15: Life on Land, (Protect, Restore, and Promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably managed forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss) seemed appropriate, and we set our sights on a conservation project. While attempting to design an on-site bioremediation system, we noticed that synthetic biology really did not have the infrastructure to develop these types of systems. After encountering this difficulty, we decided to switch the focus of our project to instead address the broader issue of fieldability (implementing synthetic biology constructs outside of the laboratory). Our team knew that by shifting our focus to fieldability we were widening the range of SDGs that we would be able to address. While our literature review confirmed that fieldability would address SDGs Number 14 and 15 (through the improved design of deployable bioremediation systems), we wanted to confirm by talking to SDG stakeholders. We talked to several individuals with invested interest in the environment and environmental conservation to hear their opinions about the impacts of fieldable synthetic biology. Dr. Franzluebbers, a research ecologist and soil science professor, stated that fieldable synthetic biology presents a great opportunity to improve soil health. Dr. Adams, a synthetic biologist focused on fieldability, shared a similar sentiment concerning the usefulness of fieldable constructs. She stated that fieldable synthetic biology could be used to increase plant drought tolerance, restore habitats, and to help fertilize plants. After talking to these scientists, we felt confident that fieldable genetic constructs were able to address SDG Number 15. However, we still wanted to confirm that it was able to address SDG Number 14. We talked to Dr. Salerno, a microbial ecologist, and Dr. Wood, a scientist at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Dr. Salerno stated that fieldable constructs could be used to clean oil spills, treat wildlife, and potentially even treat coral disease. Dr. Wood agreed with Dr. Salerno about the potential of these constructs and mentioned several uses of fieldability for bioremediation. After talking with these scientists, it was clear to us that addressing a roadblock to fieldable synthetic biology would address SDGs 14 and 15 by increasing the ability of synthetic biology to address enviornmental problems.
2. Education
To address SDG Number 4: Quality Education ("ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities"), our team both (1) developed accessible synthetic biology educational materials and (2) hosted several educational events for underrepresented groups in the sciences. First, our team designed several educational materials that we then made freely accessible. Our largest contribution is an educational game called Re-Terraforming Earth, based on the game Terraforming Mars designed by Jacob Fryxelius. In our version, players of all ages compete to make Earth “livable” again (decreasing pollution, decreasing greenhouse gas production, and increasing food security) through the use of synthetic biology. By playing this game, participants learn about the field of synthetic biology and its potential uses, the parts of a genetic circuit, chassis and chassis selection, and safety concerns associated with synthetic biology. To ensure that our game is effective at teaching others about synthetic biology, we assessed our game with several rounds of play-testing with our target audiences and incorporated changes based on their feedback. Please see our education page for more information about Re-Terraforming Earth.
In addition to our games, we also developed a booklet of educational materials and activities to help middle to high-school-aged individuals learn about synthetic biology. It teaches students basic biology and computational knowledge needed to understand Synthetic Biology, puts those ideas in the context of real-life applications, and explains the issues regarding the future of the field. It encourages students to get involved in Synthetic Biology through their own personal research and seek out learning experiences. The booklet concludes with some ideas for teachers to get their students interested in synthetic biology through interactive learning.
Our team also held several in-person educational events to introduce underrepresented groups to work in a laboratory and the field of synthetic biology. For our first two events, we invited a group from a local high school to our campus for a demonstration of the gel electrophoresis process. After presenting an overview of this process, we taught students how to use a pipetman, helped them to load gels themselves, and ran the gels. After imaging, the students interpreted the results of their gel and were able to determine the length of their DNA strand. By hosting this event over two days, we were able to introduce around 40 high-school-aged students to a technique and equipment that they would not have experienced otherwise.
In addition to hosting a gel-electrophoresis focused event, we also invited Camp EAGER to visit our laboratory and learn about synthetic biology. Camp EAGER is a summer camp dedicated to STEM education for middle and high school students from marginalized groups. For this educational event, we gave roughly 200 students a tour of our laboratory and led them through a hands-on educational activity where they took on the role of parts of a synthetic construct and walked through the process of transformation. In the laboratory, we introduced the students to multiple pieces of laboratory equipment, including a centrifuge, a pipetman, a plate reader, and an incubator. Students were encouraged to ask questions throughout the process about both the equipment and about conducting scientific research in general. While we did introduce students to the laboratory, we also wanted to highlight that not all researchers complete wetlab work and that an incredibly important group of synthetic biologists conduct computational work. We explained our project and the software that our team is building this year as computational biologists. In addition to a laboratory tour and computation introduction, we also created an interactive demonstration to teach students about circuit design. Four student participants were given a piece of construction paper corresponding to a promoter, RBS, coding region (RFP), and terminator. We explained that the order of these components is incredibly important to circuit design and that an incorrect order could result in no protein production. Students were then directed to form the correct order for circuit function using their pieces of construction paper. After explaining the design process, the remaining students were instructed to form a circle. Our “circuit” group then entered the circle formed by the other students, demonstrating that plasmids must be introduced into a chassis to form protein. In our example, after the “transformation” process, students were given red candy to demonstrate RFP production.
To further introduce underrepresented groups to the sciences, our team hosted an event for William & Mary’s Women’s Weekend. We invited women of all ages to come tour our laboratory and to hear about the research that we are conducting. We explained our project idea and the importance of computation within synthetic biology. Historically, women are typically underrepresented in computationally-based areas and our goal with this educational event was to excite our participants about mathematical modeling. In addition, we gave the participants a tour of our laboratory and demonstrated the use of a plate reader. We discussed the importance of fluorescence in synthetic biology. Then, we explained and demonstrated how we measure fluorescence.
By creating freely available, accessible educational materials and holding in-person educational events, our team has thoroughly committed ourselves to the education of people of all ages. Through these materials and events, we helped address the SDG 4: quality education.
3. Collaborations
In addition to the aforementioned SDGs, we also address SDG 17: Partnerships to Achieve the Goal. We participated in several collaborations with other iGEM teams that contributed to the SDGs. These collaborations specifically centered around the following aforementioned SDGs: Quality Education and Life Below Water. Please read below for more information about each collaboration.
Educational Collaborations:
Educational YouTube Channel
Our team contributed a video on chassis selection to an educational YouTube channel developed by Hopkins iGEM through our collaboration with the Hopkins and East Coast BioCrew iGEM teams. Our chassis selection video defines the Central Dogma of Biology, describes synthetic biology, defines a chassis in the context of synthetic biology, provides examples of chassis, and explains the importance of chassis selection, especially in relation to the development of fieldable synthetic biology systems. It explains why ‘fieldable’ chassis selection is currently so difficult, and also discusses the role of computational tools in addressing major roadblocks to fieldability. This video is freely available on YouTube (alongside Hopkins' videos on minipreps, PCR, and gel electrophoresis), as well as on our communications page.
Educational Picture Book
In addition to our video collaboration, we also participated in a collaboration with iGEM teams from McGill, Cornell, and Queens. These teams co-designed an educational picture book about bacteria, and asked other iGEM teams to help them create it by describing their favorite microbe. In order to raise awareness about synthetic biology’s amazing potential to remediate environmental pollutants, we submitted information about our favorite soil bacterium: Pseudomonas putida. We highlighted P. putida’s ability to degrade detrimental compounds, such as crude oil, and survive in antagonistic environments, which is part of what makes it such a promising chassis. We chose to participate in this collaboration because we hope that educational materials introducing students to the wide range of applications of bacteria will generate interest towards the field of synthetic biology, and to emphasize the potential for environmental bioremediation through the use of bacteria.
Life Below Water Collaborations:
Attendance of Conference on Aquaponics and Hydroponics
Several members of our team attended an online conference on aquaponics and hydroponics hosted by the PuiChing Macau and UM Macau iGEM team on September 10 (Eastern Time). Other attendees included the TecCEM and NNU-China iGEM teams. Each attending team was asked to propose a method for improving the aquaponic system developed by team PuiChing Macau and UM Macau iGEM, and to submit a document outlining their proposed improvement method. Prior to the conference, each team submitted a survey in which they provided their team name, number of team members attending the conference, contact information, a brief project description, their presentation slides, and which part of the aquaponic system they were interested in proposing an improvement for. As part of this conference, each team presented their project and their proposed improvement method to the aquaponic system. Our proposed method involved the use of our chassis selection software to select the optimal bacterial chassis for their aquaponic system. The improvement methods proposed by all attending teams were compiled into a flow chart and posted on PuiChing Macau and UM Macau iGEM’s social media platforms.
Global Seafood Cookbook
iGEM team MIT MAHE (India) proposed a collaboration for the assembly of a Geo Book, or global seafood cookbook highlighting local ecosystems and cuisine, and invited teams around the world to highlight a dish important to their culture. Ultimately, this project aims to educate the public about unsustainable practices pertaining to aquatic organisms and ecosystems. We submitted information about Eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica), which are a native species in the Chesapeake Bay, located in Virginia. Eastern oysters have a crucial role economically, culturally, and environmentally in this region. However, the Eastern oyster population has experienced a major decrease due to overfishing, disease, and pollution. By participating in this collaboration, we helped to spread information about the importance of marine life and the necessity of protecting aquatic animals. In completing this collaboration, we hope to propagate information about the important role that Eastern oysters play in our community and promote others to adopt sustainable practices when dealing with aquatic
Conclusion
Our team addressed the following SDGs through our project: Quality Education, Protecting Life on Earth, Protecting Marine Life, and Partnerships to Achieve These Goals. The SDGs are crucial to the development of a brighter and better future for everyone and the planet. By advancing some of the SDGs, we hope to bring the world one step closer to this better future.
Citations
Do you know all 17 SDGs? (n.d.). United Nations. https://sdgs.un.org/goals