Difference between revisions of "Tracks/Community Labs"

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<h2>Who is the Community Labs track for?</h2>
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<p><strong>Everyone!</strong> The Community Labs track is open to any organization, academic or otherwise, that would like to participate in iGEM. It is also the only track available to non-academic teams. These can include DIY Bio labs, hackerspaces, public institutions, and basically any organization interested in the design and engineering of biological machines.
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<h2>What's this iGEM thing all about?</h2><br />
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<div id="alertMessage"> <p> Please note that all information on this page is in a draft version. <br>Please check back often for details. </p></div>
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<h4>Some have said that <strong><a href="http://www.biologyistechnology.com/chapter-1.html">Biotechnology is (Becoming) Technology?</a></strong></h4>
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<p>Since it’s inception in 2005, competing in iGEM (and receiving/remixing the remarkable library of approx. 2000 standard genetic “biobrick parts” at the heart of the competition) has been restricted primarily to college students hosted by academic biotechnology labs. The Community Labs track, first introduced in the 2014 competition, opens the competition to a wider base of participants, <a href="">with some restrictions</a>. <!-- (TODO add jump to section) -->. We especially want to encourage teams that may not be able to conduct genetic engineering experiments within their labs due to local regulations. It’s also possible to collaborate with an authorized institution for the parts of the project that require licensed facilities.</p><br />
  
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<p>Teams develop their projects for several month over the spring and summer, then compete at the iGEM Jamboree for a variety of <a href="https://2015.igem.org/Tracks#Awards">awards and prizes</a>:</p>
 +
<ul>
 +
    <li>A Bronze, Silver or Gold <strong>Medal</strong>, available non-exclusively to each team based on excellence.</li>
 +
    <li>A Best-of-Track <strong>Award</strong> awarded only to one of the teams in each track.</li>
 +
    <li>A variety of Special <strong>Prizes</strong>.</li>
 +
    <li>The iGEM Grand Prize.</li>
 +
</ul>
 +
 
 +
<br /><br />
  
 +
<h2>How do you “win” the Community Labs track?</h2>
 +
<em>Remember, in addition to the Track Award, teams <strong>may also be awarded</strong> a Bronze, Silver or Gold Medal; a variety of Special Cross-Track Prizes; and the iGEM Grand Prize.</em><br />
 +
<p>By building something that radically increases access to the practice of Synthetic Biology consistent with iGEM’s core values of modularity and openness.</p><br />
 +
<p>Biotechnology is expensive, arcane, and bespoke, in part because the tools needed to do the work have been optimized for their <em>power</em> to answer cutting-edge scientific questions, not their <em>simplicity</em>, <em>affordability</em>, or <em>ubiquity</em>. These tools complement their professional counterparts by supporting more informal, playful explorations of the technology space; together, they accelerate innovation.</p><br />
 
<p>
 
<p>
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We are excited to announce that iGEM is '''continuing the Community Labs track for iGEM 2015'''! This track will allow Community Labs and established DIYBio groups to participate  within iGEM for the first time.
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    <strong>The Community Labs track prize will go to the team that best democratizes access to and use of synthetic biology. Build something that does that and demonstrate it's utility in the wider world. For example:</strong>
 +
    <ol>
 +
        <li>(re)designing and implementing <strong>tools and techniques optimized for simplicity, ease-of-use, cost openness, and sense of fun</strong> :)... and demonstrate their utility to actual users in the “real world”</li>
 +
        <li>develop a new application using existing synthetic biology tools and techniques that inspires collaboration and reuse amongst <strong>new communities of practitioners</strong>, and optionally also with existing professionals; and demonstrate this effect in real communities</li>
 +
        <li>Create a product, platform, or major event that significantly increases the understanding or accessibility of synthetic biology concepts and practices and, most importantly, gets used in the real world.</li>
 +
        <li>If you need ideas, consider exploring a synthetic biology project that interests you “just because it would be cool!” but that is unlikely to receive much academic or professional support. With enough quirkiness, documentation, and occasional surprises, your project may inspire other individuals to explore between the lines of academia and industry as well, leading to new practitioners and perhaps the discovery of a few new technical shortcuts appropriate for “personal” scale work.</li>
 +
    </ol>
 
</p>
 
</p>
  
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<h2 style="text-align:center; padding: 2em 0">Questions? Just email <a mailto:diy@igem.org>diy@igem.org</a>.</h2>
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<br /><br />
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<h2><a class="anchor" id="Introduction"></a> Introduction to iGEM Community Labs Track</h2>
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 +
<h2>Examples</h2>
 
<p>
 
<p>
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iGEM is an engine for innovation. In this manner it is aligned with both traditional scientific research institutions and the free market. But participants in iGEM will tell you that beyond the accolades of scientific publishing and economic reward, the real motivating force that energizes innovation is a simple desire to push technology as far as possible - and to HAVE FUN. Innovating for the sake of innovation itself is an intrinsic and separate motivation, just as a valid and important as a wish to advance science or make millions.
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    Projects that get to the core of the Community Lab Track can shine by tapping the crowd for people and resources, demonstrating that a motivated team of amateurs can do scientifically, economically, and socially interesting synthetic biology together.
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</p>
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<br />
  
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<p>
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  <div class="centerImages"><img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/0/08/2014_SF_Bay_Area_DIYbio_Championship_pg13.jpg" width="600px" />
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The worldwide community of amateur biologists, biohackers, citizen scientists, or otherwise non-institutional scientists is motivated by this incredibly powerful force. They want to push the envelope of biological technology. They want to, in general, increase the power of an individual to understand biological systems - “to understand things” - and to prototype biological designs - *to build things*.  They ask why the tools we use as biological engineers - protocols and equipment and organisms and genes - are the way they are, and imagine how they could be made simpler, less expensive, or just easier to work with.  
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  <p style="width:600px; text-align:center; margin:auto"><em>
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</p>
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SF Bay Area DIY Bio assembled a volunteer team to do the bench work and crowdfunded it... Also ran a $37k Indiegogo campaign to continue project past iGEM. (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eh6I7IXiEVM">video</a>)
 +
</em></p>
 +
  </div>
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</p><br />
  
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<img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2014/e/e1/CL_Genspace2.jpg" width = "700px">
 
 
<p>
 
<p>
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<a href="http://seas.yale.edu/news-events/news/programming-life-single-evening"> <b>DIYBio workshop held by Ellen Jorgensen at Yale </b></a>
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    They also provide the foundation for future groups, providing models to bootstrap a successful lab without needing a degree in biology.
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</p>
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<br>
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<div class="centerImages">
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<img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/4/4e/2014_genspace_openlabblueprint.png" width="600px" />
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<img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/8/8d/2014_Genspace_Championship_opentrons.jpg" width="600px" />
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<p style="width:600px; text-align:center; margin:auto"><em>
 +
Projects that make the practice of synthetic biology easier, more affordable, and faster, such as OpenLab-Blueprint, Bioglyphics, and OpenTrons from Genspace 2014 Community Labs team. Note: OpenTrons spun-out into an open-source hardware company that successfully raised $126,694 Nov 30 2014.
 +
</em></p>
 +
</div>
 +
</p><br />
  
 
<p>
 
<p>
−
In 2015 for the first time, the iGEM competition will expand to include the DIYbio community by adding the Community Lab Track. iGEM requires a large investment in time and money to participate, but its format as annual competition actually facilitates fundraising, recruitment, and general motivation to do something BIG. It provides a compelling vehicle to organize a team, a lab, and get a project done on time.  
+
Or they can use their expertise to bring the public, especially those with no previous interest or background, and turn them into participants in our mission for the advancement of synthetic biology.
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It is our hope that the new DIY track could stimulate the formation of many new community labs, with great benefit to the DIYbio community.
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<div class="centerImages">
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</p>
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<img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/d/d2/2014_igem_techmuseum_epixels.png" width="600px" />
 +
<p style="width:600px; text-align:center; margin:auto"><em>
 +
The Tech’s aim was for people of all ages and with no biology background to become part of their iGEM team. To tackle these goals, they developed an interactive activity in which visitors are involved collaboratively in both making and analyzing multi-colored bacteria.
 +
</em></p>
 +
</div>
 +
</p><br />
  
 
<p>
 
<p>
−
The Community Lab Track will have the same focus on bench research as the traditional iGEM track, however we are also looking for projects that increase the accessibility of synthetic biology. These might include kits such as Genomikon, or equipment hacks such as the Open PCR. We especially want to encourage teams that may not be able to conduct genetic engineering experiments within their labs due to local regulations, but who might innovate in the areas of equipment, software, etc. It’s also permissible to collaborate with an institution for the parts of the project that require licensed facilities, as long as it is clear that the regulated activities are being performed solely within the designated institutional space and supervised by appropriate personnel.
+
Or they can work on making the tools and materials easier to and more affordable to use.
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</p>
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<p>
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<div class="centerImages">
−
As in the past, all iGEM teams must submit a safety page. The Community Labs will have to describe their facilities in detail, and work with organisms and procedures appropriate to the <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/biosafety/publications/bmbl5/bmbl.pdf"> biosafety level </a> of their facility, and follow <a href="http://oba.od.nih.gov/rdna/nih_guidelines_oba.html"> recombinant DNA guidelines</a>.
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<img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/4/4f/2013_CUBoulder_gel.png" width="600px" />
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</p>
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<p style="width:600px; text-align:center; margin:auto"><em>
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<img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2014/4/45/CL_Genspace3.jpg" width ="700px">
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The CU-Boulder 2013 team worked on a low-cost restriction enzyme expression and purification system optimized for minimal equipment and reagents use to enable simple, on-location production of BBF10-compatible REs while reducing waste flows. This led the team to demonstrate several clever shortcuts for routine molecular biology techniques, such as a protein purification protocol using an agarose gel and enzyme purification with elastin fusion proteins. Overall, their project demonstrated affordable alternatives to more costly techniques that are often taken for granted in traditional settings.
 +
</em></p>
 +
</div>
  
−
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFW4t5ssssA"> <b>Genspace at Maker Faire London 2013</b></a>
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</p><br />
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<br>
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<h2><a class="anchor" id="Details"></a> Community Lab track details </h2>
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<p>
 
<p>
−
Community labs will be able to compete alongside traditional iGEM teams for the same prizes. Teams will be eligible for the Grand Prize, as well as other prizes such as the Best Human Practices, Best Software and Best Part awards.
+
    <!-- TODO Bangalore -->
 
</p>
 
</p>
  
 +
<br><br />
 +
<h2>Timeline</h2>
 +
<p>Please refer to the detailed <a href="https://2015.igem.org/Calendar_of_Events">Calendar of Events</a> page.</p>
 +
<br /><br />
 +
 +
<h2>Cost</h2>
 +
<p>Please refer to the <a href="https://2015.igem.org/Fees">Fees page</a></p><br />
 
<p>
 
<p>
−
If you participate in iGEM this season, we will ship you a copy of the 2015 distribution as well as fulfill any part requests for the duration of the competition. You get space on this 2015 wiki to display your project, a presentation slot and poster board at the Giant Jamboree.</p>  
+
  <a href="https://2015.igem.org/Team_Registration_Fee">Team registration fee</a>: <strong>$4500</strong> (including $500 “late” fee after March 31 - Due May 1, 2015</br>
 +
 
 +
  <a href="https://2015.igem.org/Jamboree_Attendance_Fee">Jamboree attendance fee</a>: <strong>$695</strong> per team attendee (not all have to attend) - Due July 31, 2015
 +
</p><br />
 +
<p>iGEM can seem forebodingly expensive, especially to new teams and non-academic teams. The single largest expense category for most teams is travel and lodging to attend the Giant Jamboree in Boston, typically dwarfing the amount spent on student stipends, synthesis costs, other research and materials costs, etc. Therefore, many iGEM teams raise funds via corporate sponsorships and public grants, as well as paying out-of-pocket.</p><br />
  
−
<img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2014/4/4c/Genspace1.jpg" width="300px">
+
<p>Here’s a handy guide to <strong><a href="https://2015.igem.org/Funding">Fundrasing, iGEM style</a></strong>. And the list of <a href="https://igem.org/Sponsors">offical iGEM sponsors</a>.</p><br />
  
−
<h2><a class="anchor" id="Requirements"></a> Community Lab track requirements</h2>
+
<p>Some teams raise just enough to cover official fees; others raise significantly more to cover travel and student stipends (in some cases upwards of $50k). In many cases, teams reduce or eliminate costs for many materials and reagents with corporate sponsorship.</p><br />
  
−
<p>
+
<p>In Aug 2014, the Counter Culture Labs Community Labs Track team raised $37,369 on an <a href="https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/real-vegan-cheese/">indigogo campaign</a> for their “Real Vegan Cheese” project. The scientific novelty of iGEM combined with the empowering spirit of the Community Labs track may be ideal ingreadients for successful Crowdfunding campaigns, and we encourage more teams to explore this avenue, but beware of the leadtime (months before getting the funds) and production overhead. Go check out <a href="wiki.realvegancheese.org">their iGEM finances - they published them</a>!</p><br />
−
In addition the the <a href ="https://2015.igem.org/Requirements">general requirements for all iGEM teams</a>, Community Lab teams are required to complete the following:
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</p>
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<ul>
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<div class="centerImages"><img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/c/c2/IGEM_Meme_pay_for_regionals.jpg" width="400px" />
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<li>
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</div>
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Team composition. While there is no minimum number of team members, iGEM is a team competition and single individual entries will not be accepted. CL teams must have two advisors, one of which must be in the field of their chosen subject area.
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</li>
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<li>
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<br /><br />
−
Community Lab teams must demonstrate they have access to a BL 1 lab in order to receive a copy of the distribution.
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</li>
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+
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<li>
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−
Teams participating in the hardware aspect of the CL track are encouraged to bring their equipment to the Giant Jamboree. Teams may not bring live or inactive organisms as part of their equipment. This topic will be covered in more detail when evaluation criteria and awards are published.
+
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</li>
+
−
</ul>
+
  
 +
<h2>Requirements</h2>
 +
<p>If you participate in iGEM this season, we will ship you a copy of the 2015 distribution as well as fulfill any part requests for the duration of the competition. You get space on this 2015 wiki to display your project, a presentation slot and poster board at the Giant Jamboree.</p><br />
 +
<p>In general, all teams are expected to
 +
    <ul>
 +
        <li>
 +
            <p>Have <strong>at least</strong> two advisors (for community labs, two team members must have signing ability on behalf of the host organization)</p>
 +
        </li>
 +
        <li>
 +
            <p>Document and describe your project: </p>
 +
            <ul>
 +
                <li>via your team <strong>wiki pages</strong> on 2015.iGEM.org</li>
 +
                <li>via <strong>a 20-minute presentation</strong> at the Jamboree in September.</li>
 +
                <li>via <strong>a poster</strong>, also at the Jamboree</li>
 +
                <li>via part documentation on the iGEM Registry of Standard Biological Parts</li>
 +
            </ul>
 +
        </li>
 +
        <li>
 +
            <p>Contributing new or improved parts to the iGEM Registry of Standard Biological Parts is a key activity in iGEM. If your project involves constructing a genetic system, please send it to the Registry! Be sure to send it in the required BBF RFC 10 format.</p>
 +
        </li>
 +
        <li>
 +
            <p>Participate in the <a href="https://2015.igem.org/Safety">iGEM Safety Program</a></p>
 +
        </li>
 +
        <li>
 +
            <p>Have <a href="https://www.facebook.com/IgemMemes">“fun!”</a></p>
 +
        </li>
 +
    </ul>
 +
</p><br />
 
<p>
 
<p>
−
As Community Lab teams are not operating within the framework offered by academic institutions, they must meet the following additional requirements:  
+
  <em>But wait, there’s more!</em> Please carefully review the additional requirements on the <a href="https://2015.igem.org/Requirements">Requirements page</a>. 
 
</p>
 
</p>
  
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<ol>
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<br /><br />
−
<li>
+
−
CL teams must be an incorporated entity (for profit or not-for-profit).
+
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</li>
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+
−
<li>
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−
CL teams must have a legal entity that has the ability to sign contracts.
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−
</li>
+
−
</ol>
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+
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<h2><a class="anchor" id="Medal Criteria"></a>Medal Criteria</h2>
+
  
 +
<h2><a id="Requirements"></a>Special Community Labs track requirements</h2>
 +
<p>
 +
    In addition the the <a href="https://2015.igem.org/Requirements">general requirements for all iGEM teams</a>, Community Lab teams are required to complete the following:
 +
</p><br />
 +
<ul>
 +
    <li>
 +
        Team composition. While there is no minimum number of team members, iGEM is a team competition and single individual entries will not be accepted. CL teams must have two advisors, one of which must be in the field of their chosen subject area.
 +
    </li>
 +
    <li>
 +
        Community Lab teams must demonstrate they have access to a BL 1 lab in order to receive a copy of the distribution.
 +
    </li>
 +
    <li>
 +
        Teams participating in the hardware aspect of the CL track are encouraged to bring their equipment to the Giant Jamboree. Teams may not bring live or inactive organisms as part of their equipment. This topic will be covered in more detail when evaluation criteria and awards are published.
 +
    </li>
 +
</ul><br />
 
<p>
 
<p>
−
The Community Lab Track is unique in that the track is defined not by the scope of the project, but by the type of lab the team comes out of. Therefore, the medal will be awarded based on the highest level of requirements (bronze, silver or gold) satisfied in ANY of the following four categories:
+
    As Community Lab teams are not operating within the framework offered by academic institutions, they must meet the following additional requirements:
 +
</p><br />
 
<ol>
 
<ol>
−
<li>Parts: CL teams can choose to compete based on the <a href="https://2014.igem.org/Judging/Awards">standard medal criteria for all iGEM teams</a>.</li>
+
    <li>
 +
        CL teams must be an incorporated entity (for profit or not-for-profit).
 +
    </li>
 +
    <li>
 +
        CL teams must have a legal entity that has the ability to sign contracts.
 +
    </li>
 +
</ol>
  
−
<li>Software: CL teams can choose to compete based on the <a href="https://2014.igem.org/Tracks/Software#Medal Criteria">medal requirements for the software track teams</a>.</li>
+
<br /><br />
  
−
<li>Hardware:  Community Lab Teams can choose to build and submit hardware as part of their CL track iGEM participation </li>
+
<h2 id="awards"><a name="user-content-awards" href="#awards" class="headeranchor-link" aria-hidden="true"><span class="headeranchor"></span></a>Awards</h2>
  
−
<li>Systems for Community Engagement and Promotion of Citizen Access to Synthetic Biology: CL teams can choose to work on meeting the criteria for Community Engagement</li>
+
<h3 id="medal-criteria"><a name="user-content-medal-criteria" href="#medal-criteria" class="headeranchor-link" aria-hidden="true"><span class="headeranchor"></span></a>Medal Criteria</h3>
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</ol>
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<p>Please see the <a href="https://2015.igem.org/Judging/Medals#communitylabs">Community Labs track medal page</a> for everything you ever wanted to know about medals!</p><br />
  
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</p>
+
<h3 id="special-prizes"><a name="user-content-special-prizes" href="#special-prizes" class="headeranchor-link" aria-hidden="true"><span class="headeranchor"></span></a>Special Prizes</h3>
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While Community Labs have the option of picking any of the four sets of criteria, once chose, they MUST adhere to that set of criteria.
+
<p><a href="https://2015.igem.org/Judging/Awards#SpecialPrizes">13 Special Prizes</a> may or may not be awarded at the Jamboree, and teams can win more than one: </p>
−
</p>
+
<p>Best Integrated Human Practices, Best Education and Public Engagement, Best Measurement Approach, Best Model, Best New Basic Part, Best New Composite Part, Best Part Collection, Best Wiki, Best Poster, Best Presentation, Best Software Tool, NEW! Best Supporting Entrepreneurship, Best Applied Design</p><br />
  
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<h3>iGEM 2015 Community Labs Hardware Medal Criteria </h3>
+
<h3 id="the-igem-grand-prize"><a name="user-content-the-igem-grand-prize" href="#the-igem-grand-prize" class="headeranchor-link" aria-hidden="true"><span class="headeranchor"></span></a>The iGEM Grand Prize</h3>
 +
<p>A small number of iGEM teams will be selected by the judges as iGEM Finalists. These teams will be selected based on the overall excellence of their entire project, from choice of project, to new Parts and Devices, to the quality of the Project Description, Poster, and Presentation, to the success and impact of the project, to consideration of issues of Policy and Practices, and so on. There will be three finalists from both the undergraduate section and the overgraduate section.</p>
 +
<ol>
 +
    <li>Grand Prize Undergraduate: also known as the aluminum BioBrick Trophy; best overall undergraduate team project</li>
 +
    <li>First Runner-Up Undergraduate: the next highest ranking undergraduate team project</li>
 +
    <li>Second Runner-Up Undergraduate: the next highest ranking undergraduate team project</li>
 +
    <li>Grand Prize Overgraduate: also known as the aluminum BioBrick Trophy; best overall overgraduate team project</li>
 +
    <li>First Runner-Up Overgraduate: the next highest ranking overgraduate team project</li>
 +
    <li>Second Runner-Up Overgraduate: the next highest ranking overgraduate team project</li>
 +
</ol><br />
  
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<p>
+
<h2 id="other-ways-to-participate"><a name="user-content-other-ways-to-participate" href="#other-ways-to-participate" class="headeranchor-link" aria-hidden="true"><span class="headeranchor"></span></a>Other ways to participate</h2>
−
<b>Bronze. </b>The following 4 goals must be achieved:<br>
+
<p>Find another team (doesn’t have to be local!) and suggest a collaboration! Community Lab projects may offer excellent opportunities for other teams to create innovative human practices advances.</p><br />
−
<ol id="criterialist">
+
<p>For help finding other teams, please explore the list of registered iGEM teams, and feel free to get in touch.</p><br />
−
<li>Register the team, have a great summer, and have fun attending the Jamboree.</li>
+
−
<li>Create and share a description of the team's project via the iGEM wiki.</li>
+
−
<li>Present a Poster and Talk at the iGEM Jamboree.</li>
+
−
<li>Develop a working prototype of an open source hardware tool that supports synthetic biology based on BioBrick standard biological parts (not just another gel box!)
+
−
</li></ol>
+
−
</p>
+
  
−
<p>
+
<h2 id="resources"><a name="user-content-resources" href="#resources" class="headeranchor-link" aria-hidden="true"><span class="headeranchor"></span></a>Resources</h2>
−
<b>Silver</b>: To earn a Silver Medal, in addition to the Bronze Medal requirements, a team must: <br>
+
<p>Check out the offical <a href="https://igem.org/Resources">iGEM Resource page</a></p>
−
<ol id="criterialist">
+
<ul>
−
<li>Develop and make available via a communal wiki page, schematics the information sufficient to reproduce the device. </li>
+
    <li><strong>What have other teams done?
−
<li>Provide a demonstration of their hardware using a video tutorial made available on their wiki. This tutorial should explain all the features of the hardware operation. The team must send the video to iGEM HQ and the Community Lab Committee.  
+
        <ul>
−
</li></ol>
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            <li><a href="https://igem.org/Results">Posters and Presentations from every year</a>.</strong></li>
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</p>
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            <li><a href="http://igem-qsf.github.io/BioBrick-Seeker/dist/">BioBrick Seeker - quicksearch of all biobricks in 2014</a>(thanks Aalto-Helsinki)</li>
 +
            <li><a href="http://igem-qsf.github.io/iGEM-Team-Seeker/dist/">Team Seeker - quicksearch all project abstracts from past teams (prior to 2014)</a>(thanks Aalto-Helsinki)</li>
 +
            <li><a href="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/igem.org/2/2f/Agapakis_igem_report.pdf">Detailed thematic review of iGEM 2013</a> by Christina Agapakis</li>
 +
        </ul>
 +
    </li>
 +
    <li><a href="http://www.diysect.com">DIYSECT IS A DOCUMENTARY WEB-SERIES ON DIY BIOLOGY AND BIOART</a></li>
 +
    <li><a href="http://diybio.org">diybio.org</a> - map of community spaces + global mailing list</li>
 +
    <li><a href="http://www.gaudi.ch/GaudiLabs/?page_id=19">GaudiLabs - Open designs for sophisticated lab hardware</a></li>
 +
    <li><a href="https://2014.igem.org/Team:LA_Biohackers/Practice_and_Policy">LA Biohackers 2014 - Citizen Science: A Guide to Starting a Do it Yourself (DIY) Synthetic Biology Laboratory</a></li>
 +
    <li>University of Toronto iGem Human Practice Team 2014 - <a href="A_guide_on_how_to_start_a_community_lab_finial_copy_2.pdf">A GUIDE ON HOW TO START A COMMUNITY LAB</a></li>
 +
    <li><a href="https://2014hs.igem.org/Team:OLS_Canmore_AB_CA/DIY.html">DIY equipment from a HS team</a> </li>
 +
    <li><a href="https://2014.igem.org/Team:ArtCenter_MDP">Speculative Art: car pools</a></li>
 +
</ul><br />
  
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<p>
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<br /><br />
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<b>Gold</b>: In addition to the Bronze and Silver Medal requirements, the following mandatory medal criteria and one optional criteria must be achieved: <br>
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<ol id="criterialist">
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<li>Have another team utilize the hardware developed by your team. You must clearly show how your hardware was used and the results that were obtained. Results should take the form of a written report from the team testing the hardware and be posted on both team’s wikis. </li>
+
−
<b>AND EITHER</b>
+
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<li>Outline and detail how your hardware affects Policy and Practices in Synthetic Biology. Such topics include: safety, security, ethics, or ownership, sharing, and innovation.</li>
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<b>OR</b>
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<li>Create a user-friendly software interface that allows protocols for the hardware to be easily created and shared within the community</li>
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</ol>
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</p>
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<h3>iGEM 2015 Community Labs Community Engagement Medal Criteria </h3>
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<h2 id="get-in-touch"><a name="user-content-get-in-touch" href="#get-in-touch" class="headeranchor-link" aria-hidden="true"><span class="headeranchor"></span></a>Get in touch</h2>
 +
<p>Email us at: communitylabs (at) igem (dot) org</p>
  
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<p>
+
<br /><br />
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<b>Bronze. </b>The following 4 goals must be achieved:<br>
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<ol id="criterialist">
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<li>Register the team, have a great summer, and have fun attending the Jamboree.</li>
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<li>Create and share a description of the team's project via the iGEM wiki.</li>
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<li>Present a Poster and Talk at the iGEM Jamboree.You should be able to clearly articulate the specific question(s) your team chose to address, and detail the methods used.
+
−
</li>
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−
<li>Create a 2-page Executive Summary and a 3-minute video of your project, accessible to an interested lay audience.</li>
+
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</ol>
+
−
</p>
+
−
 
+
−
<p>
+
−
<b>Silver</b>: In addition to the Bronze Medal requirements, the following four criteria must be achieved:
+
−
<br>
+
−
<ol id="criterialist">
+
−
<li>Evaluate your proposed approach, by showing the extent to which it allowed you to answer your question(s) in part or in whole.</li>
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−
<li>Describe the advantages and limitations of your method(s) in relation to the project questions.</li>
+
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<li>Outline how your team managed limitations or challenges of your method.</li>
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<li>Create step-by-step documentation for your method, sufficient that it could be replicated by another community lab.</li>
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</ol>
+
−
</p>
+
−
 
+
−
<p>
+
−
<b>Gold</b>: In addition to the Bronze and Silver Medal requirements, the following mandatory medal criteria and one optional criteria must be achieved: <br>
+
−
<ol id="criterialist">
+
−
<li>Help a current iGEM team or community lab engage the public using your method. </li>
+
−
<li>Document this using video and send this video to iGEM HQ and the Community Lab track Committee.</li>
+
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<li>Provide a method of evaluation/feedback and discuss how the feedback you received did or will inform future step(s) in your team’s project.</li>
+
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<li>iGEM projects involve important questions beyond the bench, for example relating to (but not limited to) ethics, sustainability, social justice, safety, security, or intellectual property rights. <b>Describe</b> an approach that your team used to address at least one of these questions. <b>Evaluate</b> your  approach, including whether it allowed you to answer your question(s), how it influenced the team’s scientific project, and how it might be adapted for others to use (within and beyond iGEM). We encourage thoughtful and creative approaches, and those that draw on past Policy & Practice (formerly Human Practices) activities.</li>
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</ol>
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</p>
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<h2><a class="anchor" id="Committee"></a> Community Labs track Committee</h2>
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<h2><a id="Committee"></a> Community Labs track Committee</h2>
  
 
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We have a great committee to help coordinate this endeavor. 
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We have a great committee to help coordinate this endeavor! 
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Latest revision as of 14:31, 17 April 2015

Who is the Community Labs track for?

Everyone! The Community Labs track is open to any organization, academic or otherwise, that would like to participate in iGEM. It is also the only track available to non-academic teams. These can include DIY Bio labs, hackerspaces, public institutions, and basically any organization interested in the design and engineering of biological machines.


What's this iGEM thing all about?


Some have said that Biotechnology is (Becoming) Technology?

Since it’s inception in 2005, competing in iGEM (and receiving/remixing the remarkable library of approx. 2000 standard genetic “biobrick parts” at the heart of the competition) has been restricted primarily to college students hosted by academic biotechnology labs. The Community Labs track, first introduced in the 2014 competition, opens the competition to a wider base of participants, with some restrictions. . We especially want to encourage teams that may not be able to conduct genetic engineering experiments within their labs due to local regulations. It’s also possible to collaborate with an authorized institution for the parts of the project that require licensed facilities.


Teams develop their projects for several month over the spring and summer, then compete at the iGEM Jamboree for a variety of awards and prizes:

  • A Bronze, Silver or Gold Medal, available non-exclusively to each team based on excellence.
  • A Best-of-Track Award awarded only to one of the teams in each track.
  • A variety of Special Prizes.
  • The iGEM Grand Prize.


How do you “win” the Community Labs track?

Remember, in addition to the Track Award, teams may also be awarded a Bronze, Silver or Gold Medal; a variety of Special Cross-Track Prizes; and the iGEM Grand Prize.

By building something that radically increases access to the practice of Synthetic Biology consistent with iGEM’s core values of modularity and openness.


Biotechnology is expensive, arcane, and bespoke, in part because the tools needed to do the work have been optimized for their power to answer cutting-edge scientific questions, not their simplicity, affordability, or ubiquity. These tools complement their professional counterparts by supporting more informal, playful explorations of the technology space; together, they accelerate innovation.


The Community Labs track prize will go to the team that best democratizes access to and use of synthetic biology. Build something that does that and demonstrate it's utility in the wider world. For example:

  1. (re)designing and implementing tools and techniques optimized for simplicity, ease-of-use, cost openness, and sense of fun :)... and demonstrate their utility to actual users in the “real world”
  2. develop a new application using existing synthetic biology tools and techniques that inspires collaboration and reuse amongst new communities of practitioners, and optionally also with existing professionals; and demonstrate this effect in real communities
  3. Create a product, platform, or major event that significantly increases the understanding or accessibility of synthetic biology concepts and practices and, most importantly, gets used in the real world.
  4. If you need ideas, consider exploring a synthetic biology project that interests you “just because it would be cool!” but that is unlikely to receive much academic or professional support. With enough quirkiness, documentation, and occasional surprises, your project may inspire other individuals to explore between the lines of academia and industry as well, leading to new practitioners and perhaps the discovery of a few new technical shortcuts appropriate for “personal” scale work.



Examples

Projects that get to the core of the Community Lab Track can shine by tapping the crowd for people and resources, demonstrating that a motivated team of amateurs can do scientifically, economically, and socially interesting synthetic biology together.

SF Bay Area DIY Bio assembled a volunteer team to do the bench work and crowdfunded it... Also ran a $37k Indiegogo campaign to continue project past iGEM. (video)


They also provide the foundation for future groups, providing models to bootstrap a successful lab without needing a degree in biology.

Projects that make the practice of synthetic biology easier, more affordable, and faster, such as OpenLab-Blueprint, Bioglyphics, and OpenTrons from Genspace 2014 Community Labs team. Note: OpenTrons spun-out into an open-source hardware company that successfully raised $126,694 Nov 30 2014.


Or they can use their expertise to bring the public, especially those with no previous interest or background, and turn them into participants in our mission for the advancement of synthetic biology.

The Tech’s aim was for people of all ages and with no biology background to become part of their iGEM team. To tackle these goals, they developed an interactive activity in which visitors are involved collaboratively in both making and analyzing multi-colored bacteria.


Or they can work on making the tools and materials easier to and more affordable to use.

The CU-Boulder 2013 team worked on a low-cost restriction enzyme expression and purification system optimized for minimal equipment and reagents use to enable simple, on-location production of BBF10-compatible REs while reducing waste flows. This led the team to demonstrate several clever shortcuts for routine molecular biology techniques, such as a protein purification protocol using an agarose gel and enzyme purification with elastin fusion proteins. Overall, their project demonstrated affordable alternatives to more costly techniques that are often taken for granted in traditional settings.




Timeline

Please refer to the detailed Calendar of Events page.



Cost

Please refer to the Fees page


Team registration fee: $4500 (including $500 “late” fee after March 31 - Due May 1, 2015
Jamboree attendance fee: $695 per team attendee (not all have to attend) - Due July 31, 2015


iGEM can seem forebodingly expensive, especially to new teams and non-academic teams. The single largest expense category for most teams is travel and lodging to attend the Giant Jamboree in Boston, typically dwarfing the amount spent on student stipends, synthesis costs, other research and materials costs, etc. Therefore, many iGEM teams raise funds via corporate sponsorships and public grants, as well as paying out-of-pocket.


Here’s a handy guide to Fundrasing, iGEM style. And the list of offical iGEM sponsors.


Some teams raise just enough to cover official fees; others raise significantly more to cover travel and student stipends (in some cases upwards of $50k). In many cases, teams reduce or eliminate costs for many materials and reagents with corporate sponsorship.


In Aug 2014, the Counter Culture Labs Community Labs Track team raised $37,369 on an indigogo campaign for their “Real Vegan Cheese” project. The scientific novelty of iGEM combined with the empowering spirit of the Community Labs track may be ideal ingreadients for successful Crowdfunding campaigns, and we encourage more teams to explore this avenue, but beware of the leadtime (months before getting the funds) and production overhead. Go check out their iGEM finances - they published them!




Requirements

If you participate in iGEM this season, we will ship you a copy of the 2015 distribution as well as fulfill any part requests for the duration of the competition. You get space on this 2015 wiki to display your project, a presentation slot and poster board at the Giant Jamboree.


In general, all teams are expected to

  • Have at least two advisors (for community labs, two team members must have signing ability on behalf of the host organization)

  • Document and describe your project:

    • via your team wiki pages on 2015.iGEM.org
    • via a 20-minute presentation at the Jamboree in September.
    • via a poster, also at the Jamboree
    • via part documentation on the iGEM Registry of Standard Biological Parts

  • Contributing new or improved parts to the iGEM Registry of Standard Biological Parts is a key activity in iGEM. If your project involves constructing a genetic system, please send it to the Registry! Be sure to send it in the required BBF RFC 10 format.

  • Participate in the iGEM Safety Program

  • Have “fun!”


But wait, there’s more! Please carefully review the additional requirements on the Requirements page.



Special Community Labs track requirements

In addition the the general requirements for all iGEM teams, Community Lab teams are required to complete the following:


  • Team composition. While there is no minimum number of team members, iGEM is a team competition and single individual entries will not be accepted. CL teams must have two advisors, one of which must be in the field of their chosen subject area.
  • Community Lab teams must demonstrate they have access to a BL 1 lab in order to receive a copy of the distribution.
  • Teams participating in the hardware aspect of the CL track are encouraged to bring their equipment to the Giant Jamboree. Teams may not bring live or inactive organisms as part of their equipment. This topic will be covered in more detail when evaluation criteria and awards are published.

As Community Lab teams are not operating within the framework offered by academic institutions, they must meet the following additional requirements:


  1. CL teams must be an incorporated entity (for profit or not-for-profit).
  2. CL teams must have a legal entity that has the ability to sign contracts.


Awards

Medal Criteria

Please see the Community Labs track medal page for everything you ever wanted to know about medals!


Special Prizes

13 Special Prizes may or may not be awarded at the Jamboree, and teams can win more than one:

Best Integrated Human Practices, Best Education and Public Engagement, Best Measurement Approach, Best Model, Best New Basic Part, Best New Composite Part, Best Part Collection, Best Wiki, Best Poster, Best Presentation, Best Software Tool, NEW! Best Supporting Entrepreneurship, Best Applied Design


The iGEM Grand Prize

A small number of iGEM teams will be selected by the judges as iGEM Finalists. These teams will be selected based on the overall excellence of their entire project, from choice of project, to new Parts and Devices, to the quality of the Project Description, Poster, and Presentation, to the success and impact of the project, to consideration of issues of Policy and Practices, and so on. There will be three finalists from both the undergraduate section and the overgraduate section.

  1. Grand Prize Undergraduate: also known as the aluminum BioBrick Trophy; best overall undergraduate team project
  2. First Runner-Up Undergraduate: the next highest ranking undergraduate team project
  3. Second Runner-Up Undergraduate: the next highest ranking undergraduate team project
  4. Grand Prize Overgraduate: also known as the aluminum BioBrick Trophy; best overall overgraduate team project
  5. First Runner-Up Overgraduate: the next highest ranking overgraduate team project
  6. Second Runner-Up Overgraduate: the next highest ranking overgraduate team project

Other ways to participate

Find another team (doesn’t have to be local!) and suggest a collaboration! Community Lab projects may offer excellent opportunities for other teams to create innovative human practices advances.


For help finding other teams, please explore the list of registered iGEM teams, and feel free to get in touch.


Resources

Check out the offical iGEM Resource page




Get in touch

Email us at: communitylabs (at) igem (dot) org



Community Labs track Committee

We have a great committee to help coordinate this endeavor!