We organized a Science Café event in the heart of Berlin (Betahouse – Coworking space in
Kreuzberg) on August 7 2015 and, hereby, provided an interface between science, research,
and art. Four presentations about different fields, including our Enzymatic Flagellulose, made
this event a very special one. We showed and discussed our projects with a language easy for a
non-scientific audience to comprehend. We focused on addressing the issue of microplastics
and the alarming threat that they represent to human health. Additionally, we talked about
how genetic engineering help us be more efficient and generate either enzymes, proteins or
products that are usually difficult to access and produce. We made a clear emphasis on the
importance of good scientific practices when it comes to handling genetically modified
organisms. Although the audience have heard about them before, some points needed to be
clarified for the public to understand that in our proceedings there is no threat to either
biodiversity, environment or human health.
Moreover, we talked about how important it is to remain “inter- or trans-disciplinary” in
science. By presenting the different members of our team and their diverse academic
backgrounds we stressed the fact that solution can only be achieved through collaboration
from different fields.
The audience was very happy to obtain first hand information from researchers working on
topics that concern the society and the government. The main feedback from the audience
focused on how good it is to make science accessible to the public and how important it is to
explain complex methods in a visual way.
Our participation definitely clarified some points and misunderstandings. The public was invited
to visit the lab anytime and also to help us in anyway from web designing to fund raising.
