Overview

In this module, we connect our project to the global synthetic biology community through active communication and collaboration. We maintain close ties with other iGEM teams, research institutes, and industry experts to share research findings and experiences. Additionally, we engage with government agencies to understand the policy regulations and support for sugar substitutes, ensuring our products comply with relevant guidelines. Through these interactions, we continuously optimize our project design to enhance its scientific rigor and feasibility.

Communication

"Communication is the bridge between individuals and the key to effective competition."

Exchange Meeting

On February 27th, we successfully held the iGEM Competition Exchange Meeting, inviting Ms. Zhang Nan, Vice President of iGEM Global Development, along with teams from Southern University of Science and Technology, South China University of Technology, Beijing Normal University Zhuhai, Shenzhen Polytechnic University, Southern Medical University, and Guangdong Medical University. We also welcomed teachers and students from Shenzhen Middle School, Basis-China, AIS-China, and LINKS-China. The meeting included in-depth discussions on topics such as challenges and explorations in synthetic biology, competition resources, team transformation, competition planning, and team-building experiences. This exchange not only addressed teams' questions about the iGEM competition but also deepened our understanding and gathered valuable feedback.

iSCRM

This year, the 8th iGEM Southern China Regional Meeting (iSCRM), hosted by SZU-China, took place on May 18 as scheduled. The event attracted 16 teams from various regions of South China, with nearly 200 participants—a record high. Themed "Get Ideas Ripple," the meeting encouraged teams to present and share their innovative ideas, fostering collaboration and creativity among participants.
In addition to the traditional booth exchange format, this year we introduced a pin collection activity for the first time, enhancing interactivity and engagement. Each team designed a unique pin-collecting game at their booth, drawing participants to visit different booths for interaction and idea exchange.

CCiC

From July 12 to 16, we attended the 11th CCiC (Conference of the China iGEMer Community) in Suzhou. We engaged in in-depth exchanges with iGEM teams from across China and attended lectures by Prof. Zhang Weiwen and Dr. Bao Yuhan on "Biosafety in Synthetic Biology: Policy Theory and Industrialization." This exposure to cutting-edge research helped our team identify a new breakthrough in the Safety section of our project and clarified the direction for our future research.
Additionally, the discussions at the conference sparked fresh inspiration for our human practice activities, significantly advancing the project's development. This CCiC meeting strengthened our connections with iGEM teams nationwide and laid a solid foundation for future collaboration.

iGBA

From August 1 to 3, SZU-China team members visited the Southern University of Science and Technology to participate in the 2nd iGEM Greater Bay Area Industry-Academia-Research Forum. During the event, we held a roundtable discussion with teams from HKUSTGZ and SZPU to explore how to innovate our educational activities, moving beyond traditional models to foster more meaningful interactions with society. We also brainstormed with teams from BNUZH and HKUST on how to craft a compelling integrated human practice storyline, structure a framework, and explore diverse forms of its development. Additionally, we established a partnership with JLU-China to collaborate on their white paper project. As a team in the Food & Nutrition village, we are working together to effectively address safety considerations in our project.

Asia-Pacific Mini Jamboree

In August, we attended the Asia-Pacific Mini Jamboree hosted by HKU and PolyU at the University of Hong Kong. During the event, we exchanged project designs with several teams and gained valuable insights from a wiki workshop on phrasing and typography. In the mock judging session, we presented our project and received constructive feedback during the Q&A. A professor from HKU suggested revising our presentation and illustrations from the perspective of non-botanical researchers, ensuring that judges from various biological fields could fully understand our project. Additionally, we identified several commonly overlooked issues and learned valuable lessons on how to refine and enhance our presentation.

Cooperation

"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."

——Helen Keller

In addition to the above forum exchanges, we have also established close ties with a number of teams. We believe that healthy competition is built on friendly cooperation.

SMU-GDMU-China

On January 26th, the new team SMU-GDMU-China came to Shenzhen University to communicate with Dr. Chen Weizhao, the PI of SZU-China, about the experience of creating and leading the team. During this time, the students of the joint team also communicated with the old and new members of SZU-China, and the old members shared their experiences with the new members. This exchange also laid the foundation for the rich exchange and cooperation between the two teams.

UM-Macau and BNUZH-China

This exchange was a valuable opportunity. Students from the University of Macau and Beijing Normal University Zhuhai Campus come to the SZU campus. Face-to-face interaction allowed us to share our brainstorming results, discuss the design of synthetic biology, and learn from each other's valuable experience in project design, experimental techniques, team management and innovative thinking.

CAU-China

The team leader from CAU-China came to SZU to visit us. We warmly received her and exchanged our experience in team management and collaboration.

HKUST-GZ

HKUST-GZ, a newly established team this year, contacted us and asked to borrow DNA reagents aeBlue. We actively reached out to lend our reagents to the team. As a result we established a friendly relationship.

AIS-China

AIS-China worked with us to discuss ways to optimize shRNA design for enhanced gene targeting, assessed the biosafety of gene editing mosquito releases, and considered the potential ecological risks of GMO releases and management measures. Advisors and members of our team patiently answered their questions through online meetings.

BASIS-China

The high school team BASIS-China have always had a good relationship with us. This year we co-organized an offline meeting and exchange our experience.

High school team

The iGEM national team from Jia Shu Organization and the iGEM team from Shenzhen Shenmei Expatriate Children's School came to Shenzhen University together to do exchanges with SZU-China's iGEMers. On that day, each of the three teams shared their projects. During the demonstration and discussion, each team gained knowledge and made new friends.

JLU-China

We were invited by Jilin University to collaborate in writing The Biosecurity and Bioethics Whitepaper, and after discussion, SZU-China was responsible for interpreting GM safety laws of food and nutrition village.

HUBU-China

We were invited by HUBU-China to discuss several safety issues online. Participating teams shared their considerations of safety in project design and human practices, and we exchanged ideas on how to get in touch with relevant experts and scholars, as well as our experiences in keeping in touch with different governmental departments. The experience gained from this meeting can guide us to carry out safety-related human practices more efficiently, and we also documented the inspiring project safety design for the reference of the project team members.

McMaster_Canada

McMaster_Canada invited us to make a sticker book together, and through this opportunity we met a group of foreign friends.