Team:BrockU/Public Engagement

Brock University iGem Wiki

The BrockU iGEM team made significant efforts this year to encourage and promote the exploration of science to students among varying levels of education and to members of our community. Our team was particularly focused on engaging with students in elementary school, as they are young, impressionable and very curious. Throughout our endeavours, we focused on keeping an open and clear dialogue in order to bridge the communication gap between our research and the intrigue of our community.

Please see below for the specific ways in which we spread scientific enthusiasm to our community.
Power Cord
November 12, 2017

One of our members, Marvel (featured on the right), volunteers at the Brock Research and Innovation Centre, where she assits members who have spinal cord injuries and neurological disorders exercise to improve their motor abilities. Through that position, she also promotes research participation and literacy by informing members of the ongoing research projects at Brock, including the iGEM project, as well as how they can contribute. Many research projects require participation from people with spinal cord injuries or neurological disorders so these members are very important to reach. Many members participate in research at Brock as a result.
St. Mark Science Fair
February 2, 2018

A few members of our team helped judge the Saint Mark elementary school science fair. It was a privilege to see these young scientists channel their inner creativity through scientific experiments. Devin (right) is paying close attention to this interesting project!
NSERC ScienceAction! Contest
February 6, 2018

One of our members placed third in a nation-wide NSERC video competition called ScienceAction! Way to go Taylor!
Speed Mentoring for Girls in STEM
April 26, 2018

IBM hosted a speed mentoring session for girls who are interested in pursuing a future in science, technology, engineering or math. Our team members, Taylor (far left in the pink) and Samantha (third to the right), really enjoyed the opportunity to speak with such amazing young girls.
Kazakhstan Collaboration
June 19, 2018

Our team was lucky enough to get a helping hand from a previous iGEM Gold medalist, Sultan Mussakhan (right). Currently attending Nazarbayev University, Sultan recently completed some work at Brock University and gave Devin (left) and the rest of our team some tips for success!
Presentation for Youth in Science
July 20, 2018

Brock University is host to a fantastic youth summer camp. The iGEM team was fortunate enough to discuss with these youthful minds about our novel project and how it involves light, DNA, and bacteria.
oGEM Presentation
July 28, 2018

Our team presented our 2018 iGEM project at the annual oGEM conference hosted by McMaster University. It was a great day of receiving and giving feedback on projects to the other teams that attended. This allowed us to grow as a team while making connections with other teams and sharing our knowledge with them.
Move-In Day for First-Year Students
September 2, 2018

The Brock iGEM team volunteered to help the first year students move into their residences. It was a great way to interact with the students, promote our team, our research at Brock, and inform the students about our innovative project.
BrockU iGEM Takes on Vendor Fair
September 4, 2018

Teaming up with the MRT club (Molecular Research Technology), our team interacted with students in various disciplines to promote iGEM, recruit students, and highlight the benefits of being a member of iGEM; such as having many fantastic opportunities to gain research experience, networking, and collaboration.
BUSAC Presentation
October 17, 2018

The Brock iGEM team presented our findings to the Brock University Students’ Administrative Council (BUSAC), an elected student body government, to raise awareness and gain support for the Brock iGEM team. The presentation was an overwhelming success, with many BUSAC members giving their support to the iGEM team for this year, and in the future!