Safety

Safety

Please note that all information on this page is in a draft version.
Please check back often for details.

Who is the iGEM Safety Committee?

Safety Form

Every team should complete a Safety Form. This form lets you show us several things:

  • That you are working responsibly in an appropriate lab.
  • That you are in contact with the biosafety authorities of your university/institution, or of your country.
  • That you are working with your advisors to ensure good lab practices.

The Safety Form also helps you think further about safety for your project as it is now, and as it might be in the future. You should complete a Preliminary Version of your safety form by July 21: answer as many questions as you can, tell us about different project ideas, and don't worry about making it perfect. Then, you should complete a Final Version of your safety form by September 1. On the Final Version, you should answer all the questions completely.

Any team members can write the Safety Form and save it as a draft. You will need an Instructor to submit the form.

What about non-biological safety?

This year, the iGEM safety program only covers biological safety. iGEM does not have safety policies or safety forms for hazardous chemicals (methanol, ethidium bromide, etc.), equipment (open flames, liquid nitrogen equipment, etc.), or radioactivity (radio-labeled nucleotides, etc.). Your advisors and instructors are responsible for ensuring that you work safely with any chemicals, equipment, or radioactivity that you use. Consult your instructors, your laboratory manager, or your lab safety office for help with non-biological safety. Of course, if you have a question or concern about non-biological safety, you are welcome to ask us (safety AT igem DOT org) at any time! Similarly, we encourage you to write about these issues on your wik