Team:BGU Israel/Outreach

From 2013.igem.org

(Difference between revisions)
Line 33: Line 33:
                    
                    
<div class="panes">
<div class="panes">
-
                     <!-- tab 1 content -->  
+
                     <!-- Introduction -->  
    <div>  
    <div>  
                     <h2>Outreach Introduction</h2><hr /><br />  
                     <h2>Outreach Introduction</h2><hr /><br />  
                     <p>We embarked on a massive outreach campaign to encourage discourse with the public about synthetic biology, in order to dispel misconceptions and foster debate. Our outreach campaign was aimed at reaching as many people from different communities and age groups as possible. We wanted to burst out of the invisible walls separating the academy from the general public and trigger discussions in a variety of platforms, making the subject accessible to all.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></p>
                     <p>We embarked on a massive outreach campaign to encourage discourse with the public about synthetic biology, in order to dispel misconceptions and foster debate. Our outreach campaign was aimed at reaching as many people from different communities and age groups as possible. We wanted to burst out of the invisible walls separating the academy from the general public and trigger discussions in a variety of platforms, making the subject accessible to all.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></p>
                     </div>
                     </div>
-
                     <!-- ends tab 1 content  -->  
+
                     <!-- ends Introduction    -->  
-
                   <!-- tab 2 content -->
+
                   <!-- SynBio for Kids -->
                   <div>
                   <div>
                         <h2>SynBio for Kids</h2><hr />
                         <h2>SynBio for Kids</h2><hr />
Line 52: Line 52:
                </p>
                </p>
    </div>
    </div>
-
    <!-- ENDS tab 3 content -->
+
    <!-- ENDS SynBio for Kids -->
-
    <!-- tab 3 content -->
+
    <!-- Media -->
    <div>
    <div>
                         <h2>Media</h2><hr />
                         <h2>Media</h2><hr />
-
                         <p>How can people form an educated opinion about synthetic biology if they’ve never even heard of it?</br>We used old and new media to let as many people as possible know about iGEM and our team.</p>
+
                         <p>We took a two-pronged approach to our media campaign in order to make synthetic biology accessible to as many people as possible through a wide variety of channels. </p>
-
                        <h6>New Media</h6>
+
                        </br>
-
<p>1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br></p>
+
                        <h6>New Media: The Bottom-Up Approach</h6>
-
                         <h6>TV & Radio</h6>
+
                        <div class="two-six ">
-
<p>1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br></p>
+
                          </br><p>
-
                        <h6>Newspaper</h6>
+
                            For many people, new media, including websites, blogs, and social networks, has become a major source of information about the world. Its unique advantage over forms of traditional media is that it enables a direct dialog between the public and the source, in which people can express their positions freely. It can also make information accessible to a wider range of people, who are not involved in the field or who don’t read traditional news sources. For researchers, new media is an important tool to enable a complex issue, such as synthetic biology, to become accessible for the general public.</br></br>
-
<p>1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br></p>
+
                            During the past months, we addressed the public through a wide range of channels, including:
 +
                            <ol class="bulletlist">
 +
                            <li class="bulletlist">A number of <a href="http://realitybugs.me/2013/09/16/icon-and-igem-bgu/" target="_blank">blogs</a> and podcasts. </br></br>
 +
                            <audio controls>
 +
                                <source src="./images/BGU_podcast1.mp3" type="audio/mpeg">
 +
                            </audio>
 +
                            </br></br>
 +
                            <li class="bulletlist">We opened a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsMkjjYoDQw8KITdhmynB1w" target="_blank">Youtube channel</a> featuring a whiteboard animation explaining our project and a number of other videos of our group at various events.</li>
 +
                            </br>
 +
                            <li class="bulletlist">Our official <a href="http://www.facebook.com/iGEMBGU" target="_blank">Facebook page</a> received more than 3,000 likes and has reached over 200,000 people from over 20 different countries.
 +
                            The page has allowed us to directly interact with people and answer their concerns and questions, and we have received hundreds of messages and comments on Facebook. </br>
 +
                            </br>Our personal favorite was a message from a fourteen year old girl: <font color="orange">&rdquo;Science has been my biggest dream since I was a child. You have inspired me to believe I can fulfill this dream one day.&rdquo; </font>She heard about the project through a popular Facebook page called &rdquo;Tweeting Statuses&rdquo;, which posted a goofy picture of the team with a caption explaining our project, and got around 3,400 likes and over 600 shares the day it was posted. </li>
 +
                            </br>
 +
                            <li class="bulletlist">We also launched a <a href="http://www.headstart.co.il/project.aspx?id=6582" target="_blank">crowd-funding campaign</a>, in which we introduced synthetic biology and asked for help from the public to raise the last of the needed funds to participate in the competition. The campaign was very successful, raising 171% of our initial goal.</li>
 +
                            </ol>
 +
                            </p>
 +
                        </div>
 +
                        <div class="one-six last">
 +
                            <h8>&rdquo;Tweeting Statuses&rdquo; post about iGEM-BGU</h8></br>
 +
                            <img src="./images/BGU_media1.png" /></br>
 +
                            <h8>Our team’s Facebook Page</h8></br>
 +
                            <img src="./images/BGU_media2.png" /></br>
 +
                            <h8>Our Headstart crowdfunding site</h8></br>
 +
                            <img src="./images/BGU_media3.png" /></br>
 +
                        </div>
 +
                        <div class="clear "></div>
 +
 +
                         <h6>Conventional Media: The Top-Down Approach</h6>
 +
<div class="two-six ">
 +
                          </br><p>
 +
                            Despite the recent rise of new media, conventional media still has enormous influence in education and creating a public debate. </br>
 +
                            In general, stories in newspapers, TV programs, and news websites have a longer, more informative format, and we took advantage of all three for our human practice campaign. </br>
 +
                            Moreover, traditional media reaches segments of the population who are not necessarily active on Facebook or other new media sources. </br>
 +
                            <ol class="bulletlist">
 +
                            <li class="bulletlist">A feature story about our project and the iGEM competition was broadcasted on Israel's national television, and we also appeared on a morning show on Channel 2, Israel’s most viewed channel.</li>
 +
                            </br>  
 +
                            <li class="bulletlist">We were also interviewed on Israel's national radio and in the South’s regional radio. </br></br>
 +
                            <audio controls>
 +
                                <source src="./images/BGU_radio.mp3" type="audio/mpeg">
 +
                            </audio>
 +
                            </br></br>
 +
                            <li class="bulletlist">One of Israel&rsquo;s biggest economic news sources, the <a href="http://www.calcalist.co.il/internet/articles/0,7340,L-3609295,00.html" target="_blank">Calcalist</a>, published a printed as well as digital article about the project and the iGEM competition.</li>
 +
                            </br>
 +
                            <li class="bulletlist">We also appeared in Israel&rsquo;s biggest science news website – <a href="http://www.hayadan.org.il/topic/igem/" target="_blank">Hayadaan</a> and in the synthetic biology website <a href="http://getsynbio.com/bgu-crowdsource-self-destruct-mechanism/" target="_blank">GetSynBio</a>.</li>
 +
                            </br>
 +
                            <li class="bulletlist">The climax of the campaign was when the project appeared in a two-page spread in <b>Yediot Ahronot</b>, Israel&rsquo;s most popular printed newspaper, and a version of the article appeared in the homepage of its online counterpart, the most popular news website in Israel, <a href="http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-4427473,00.html" target="_blank">Ynet</a> News.</li>
 +
                            </ol>
 +
                            </p>
 +
                        </div>
 +
                        <div class="one-six last">
 +
                            <h8>&rdquo;Destroying Themselves&rdquo;, Yediot Ahronot&rsquo;s article about iGEM_BGU.</h8></br>
 +
                            <img src="./images/BGU_media4.png" /></br>
 +
                            <h8>iGEM_BGU on the Channel 2 News</h8></br>
 +
                            <img src="./images/BGU_media5.png" /></br>
 +
                            <h8>&rdquo;The Bacteria that Destroy Themselves&rdquo;, iGEM_BGU in Ynet News</h8></br>
 +
                            <img src="./images/BGU_media6.png" /></br>
 +
                        </div>
    </div>
    </div>
-
    <!-- ENDS tab 3 content -->
+
    <!-- ENDS Media -->
-
    <!-- tab 4 content -->
+
    <!-- Special Events -->
    <div>
    <div>
                         <h2>Special Events</h2><hr />
                         <h2>Special Events</h2><hr />
Line 79: Line 135:
<p>1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br></p>
<p>1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br>tab1</br></p>
    </div>
    </div>
-
    <!-- ENDS tab 4 content -->
+
    <!-- ENDS Special Events -->
                        
                        
-
    <!-- tab 5 content -->
+
    <!-- Art -->
    <div>
    <div>
  <div class="a1">
  <div class="a1">
Line 126: Line 182:
                           <p>  </p>
                           <p>  </p>
    </div>
    </div>
-
    <!-- ENDS tab 5 content -->
+
    <!-- ENDS Art -->
-
                     <!-- tab 6 content -->
+
                     <!-- Bio Ethics -->
    <div>
    <div>
                         <h2>Bio Ethics</h2><hr />
                         <h2>Bio Ethics</h2><hr />
Line 134: Line 190:
<p><b>Q:</b></br>A: </br></br></br><b>Q:</b></br>A: </br></br></br><b>Q:</b></br>A: </br></br></br><b>Q:</b></br>A: </br></br></br></p>
<p><b>Q:</b></br>A: </br></br></br><b>Q:</b></br>A: </br></br></br><b>Q:</b></br>A: </br></br></br><b>Q:</b></br>A: </br></br></br></p>
    </div>
    </div>
-
    <!-- ENDS tab 6 content -->
+
    <!-- ENDS Bio Ethics -->
</div>
</div>

Revision as of 18:09, 27 September 2013

BGU_Israel

Outreach Starting a Discussion

Outreach Introduction



We embarked on a massive outreach campaign to encourage discourse with the public about synthetic biology, in order to dispel misconceptions and foster debate. Our outreach campaign was aimed at reaching as many people from different communities and age groups as possible. We wanted to burst out of the invisible walls separating the academy from the general public and trigger discussions in a variety of platforms, making the subject accessible to all.












SynBio for Kids


It’s a cliché, but children really are the future (and so is synthetic biology!). We ran fun synbio activities at Science Night, a children’s science festival, and created an activity kit that others can use to help kids learn about synthetic biology.

Science Night

1
tab1
tab1
tab1
tab1

Activity Kit

some words about the kit ********

Media


We took a two-pronged approach to our media campaign in order to make synthetic biology accessible to as many people as possible through a wide variety of channels.


New Media: The Bottom-Up Approach

For many people, new media, including websites, blogs, and social networks, has become a major source of information about the world. Its unique advantage over forms of traditional media is that it enables a direct dialog between the public and the source, in which people can express their positions freely. It can also make information accessible to a wider range of people, who are not involved in the field or who don’t read traditional news sources. For researchers, new media is an important tool to enable a complex issue, such as synthetic biology, to become accessible for the general public.

During the past months, we addressed the public through a wide range of channels, including:

  1. A number of blogs and podcasts.



  2. We opened a Youtube channel featuring a whiteboard animation explaining our project and a number of other videos of our group at various events.

  3. Our official Facebook page received more than 3,000 likes and has reached over 200,000 people from over 20 different countries. The page has allowed us to directly interact with people and answer their concerns and questions, and we have received hundreds of messages and comments on Facebook.

    Our personal favorite was a message from a fourteen year old girl: ”Science has been my biggest dream since I was a child. You have inspired me to believe I can fulfill this dream one day.” She heard about the project through a popular Facebook page called ”Tweeting Statuses”, which posted a goofy picture of the team with a caption explaining our project, and got around 3,400 likes and over 600 shares the day it was posted.

  4. We also launched a crowd-funding campaign, in which we introduced synthetic biology and asked for help from the public to raise the last of the needed funds to participate in the competition. The campaign was very successful, raising 171% of our initial goal.

”Tweeting Statuses” post about iGEM-BGU

Our team’s Facebook Page

Our Headstart crowdfunding site

Conventional Media: The Top-Down Approach

Despite the recent rise of new media, conventional media still has enormous influence in education and creating a public debate.
In general, stories in newspapers, TV programs, and news websites have a longer, more informative format, and we took advantage of all three for our human practice campaign.
Moreover, traditional media reaches segments of the population who are not necessarily active on Facebook or other new media sources.

  1. A feature story about our project and the iGEM competition was broadcasted on Israel's national television, and we also appeared on a morning show on Channel 2, Israel’s most viewed channel.

  2. We were also interviewed on Israel's national radio and in the South’s regional radio.



  3. One of Israel’s biggest economic news sources, the Calcalist, published a printed as well as digital article about the project and the iGEM competition.

  4. We also appeared in Israel’s biggest science news website – Hayadaan and in the synthetic biology website GetSynBio.

  5. The climax of the campaign was when the project appeared in a two-page spread in Yediot Ahronot, Israel’s most popular printed newspaper, and a version of the article appeared in the homepage of its online counterpart, the most popular news website in Israel, Ynet News.

”Destroying Themselves”, Yediot Ahronot’s article about iGEM_BGU.

iGEM_BGU on the Channel 2 News

”The Bacteria that Destroy Themselves”, iGEM_BGU in Ynet News

Special Events


Ever go to a wine-tasting and get a taste of synthetic biology? Or read a great science fiction novel and discover that actually, it’s close to becoming reality? Or attended a day of lectures for the general public inspired by synthetic biology?

Wine Festival

1
tab1
tab1
tab1
tab1

Gooogle

...

Yanki

1
tab1
tab1
tab1
tab1

Art


To spice up our outreach efforts, we looked for humorous, creative and fun ways to promote synthetic biology. One of our initiatives was connecting synthetic biology to art!

SynBio Caricature Competition

We organized a synthetic biology caricature contest that we advertised in various art programs and on Facebook, to give a chance for art creative way to explain synthetic biology in an illustration of any kind. Our purpose was both to collect funny and sharp caricatures and to let people with no biological background think about synthetic biology and describe it or criticize it using art.



        Here are few of the beautiful submissions:

Gallery in the University

Bio Ethics


We wanted to engage the community in a discussion of the ethical questions involved in synthetic biology, and so we crowdsourced for questions for an ethics FAQ.

Q:
A:


Q:
A:


Q:
A:


Q:
A: