Team:Dundee/HumanPractice

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           <h2><b>Clatto Country Park – Case Study</b> </h2>
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           <h2><b>Human Practices Overview</b> </h2>
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           <p>Many open waters located in and around Dundee are affected by Blue-Green Algae. This was one motivation that made selecting our ToxiMop project appropriate because we are tackling a local problem that also has worldwide implications.</p><br>
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           <p>For Dundee iGEM team, a human practice is developing strong bonds between people and science while encouraging strong scientific involvement in current problems and legislations. The motivation behind our project lends itself to human practices as we are battling a local problem which concerns human safety and usage of fresh water reservoirs.<br>
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The Dundee Life Sciences sector contributes to 16% of the local economy, making it crucial that we keep the public involved in what we do.</p>
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        <p> One particular location in Dundee where Blue-Green Algae has had a dramatic effect is Clatto Country Park. In the past the park has had up to 95,000 visitors per year with recreational activities such as watersports, children’s play areas and picnic sites being the main attractions focussed around the parks freshwater reservoir and surrounding woods.</p><br>
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<p>We initiated a political campaign to inform the public about the issue and question the lack of scientific back up in current legislations. To bridge the gap between the scientific knowledge and public legislation, we brought together representatives of local parliament, environmental agencies, respected researchers (working in this field), local park rangers and Friends of the Earth. Together they discussed synthetic biology and how to deal with algal blooms.</p>
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          <p>Moving forward in time, with the Blue-Green Algae problems faced by the park each year, recreational swimming is no longer permitted in the reservoir. This has shutdown the watersports programme at Clatto and the signage to warn people of the danger faced by the water has had such a dramatic effect to reduce the number of visitors per year to less than 30,000. This reduction in visitors has led to the closure of staffing facilities.  The aim of ToxiMop project is to restore open waters like Clatto back to their former glory.</p><br>
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<p>Additionally, we approached a range of age groups to educate them on the problem caused by algal blooms and propose how synthetic biology may be a solution. We strived to engage people from all backgrounds by attending events or setting up meetings with groups from different disciplines such as:</p>
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          <p>We have been working with George Potts, Senior Countryside Ranger, who has been involved at Clatto for 40 years. We want to raise awareness that the testing procedures at Clatto are insufficient to demand the closure recreational activities on the reservoir. This is strongly linked to the development of our MopTopus electronic sensing device, which can be used as a more appropriate measure of the toxin levels in the water. </p><br>
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<ul>
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<li>School Science Workshops</li>
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<li>Undergraduate teaching practicals</li>
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<li>Cafe Science</li>
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<li>Dundee tech meet up</li>
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<li>Friends of the Earth </li>
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<li>SEPA – Scottish Environmental Protection Agency</li>
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          <p>Currently sampling is carried out once a month, and when a dangerous level of toxin is detected three clean tests are required to give the all clear to the reservoir. Therefore during the summer after microcystin is detected the reservoir is closed for 3 months minimum. MopTopus will allow daily samples and updates to be taken. </p><br>
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<p>Furthermore, we took advantage of current social media set ups to engage a larger audience. Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Flickr and Google+ were all updated on a regular basis communicate our progress and achievements.</p>
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<p>Some novel approaches we took to captivating the public were through a comic book and video game. These entertained our audience, particularly the younger generation, and demonstrated a humorous side to synthetic biology.</p>
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<p>Dundee’s slogan is “One City, Many Discoveries” in honour of Dundee's history of scientific activities. </p>
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          <p>Dundee City Councils guidelines enforced for the dangerous levels of toxins for recreational sports are as advised by the WHO for safe drinking water, whereas in other locations around the world different practices are used. We want to work with Ancrum Outdoor Activity Centre, Dundee City Council and SEPA to raise awareness on the safety of the water and how using synthetic biology our MopTopus device has the potential to return locations like Clatto back to popular venues for future generations. </p><br>
 
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Revision as of 15:02, 15 August 2013

iGEM Dundee 2013 · ToxiMop

Dundee 2013

Human Practices Overview

For Dundee iGEM team, a human practice is developing strong bonds between people and science while encouraging strong scientific involvement in current problems and legislations. The motivation behind our project lends itself to human practices as we are battling a local problem which concerns human safety and usage of fresh water reservoirs.
The Dundee Life Sciences sector contributes to 16% of the local economy, making it crucial that we keep the public involved in what we do.

We initiated a political campaign to inform the public about the issue and question the lack of scientific back up in current legislations. To bridge the gap between the scientific knowledge and public legislation, we brought together representatives of local parliament, environmental agencies, respected researchers (working in this field), local park rangers and Friends of the Earth. Together they discussed synthetic biology and how to deal with algal blooms.

Additionally, we approached a range of age groups to educate them on the problem caused by algal blooms and propose how synthetic biology may be a solution. We strived to engage people from all backgrounds by attending events or setting up meetings with groups from different disciplines such as:

  • School Science Workshops
  • Undergraduate teaching practicals
  • Cafe Science
  • Dundee tech meet up
  • Friends of the Earth
  • SEPA – Scottish Environmental Protection Agency

Furthermore, we took advantage of current social media set ups to engage a larger audience. Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Flickr and Google+ were all updated on a regular basis communicate our progress and achievements.

Some novel approaches we took to captivating the public were through a comic book and video game. These entertained our audience, particularly the younger generation, and demonstrated a humorous side to synthetic biology.

Dundee’s slogan is “One City, Many Discoveries” in honour of Dundee's history of scientific activities.




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