CCiC is an annual event primarily for iGEMers in China to collaborate and network with academia and industry through workshops and roundtables, fostering the growth of the synthetic biology community.
- Event Date: July 12th-14th, 2024
- iGEM Representatives: Dorothy Zhang, VP of Global Develoment, iGEM Foundation - Yuhan Bao, Liaison Officer, iGEM Foundation - and Dominic Yang, iGEM Ambassador to Asia & Oceania
The 11th Conference of the China iGEMer Community (CCiC) - SynBio Nexus was held at Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University. 702 people attended the conference, including 89 teams from universities such as Tsinghua University, Peking University, Zhejiang University, Shanghai Jiaotong University, and Fudan University, and 35 teams from high schools like the Affiliated High School of Renmin University of China. They shared and showcased their iGEM projects and had in-depth exchanges with experts from academia and industry.
The event was supported and funded by XJTLU Wisdom Lake Academy of Pharmacy and other organizations including, Suzhou Jinweizhi Biotechnology Co., Ltd., Corning Continuous Pharmaceutical Technology (Suzhou) Co., Ltd., Agilent Technologies (China) Co., Ltd., Shanghai Yanyin Technology Co., Ltd., Suzhou Beikang Medical Co., Ltd., Suzhou Yixi Biotechnology Co., Ltd., and Twist Bioscience. Guests included Dr. Fu, Director of the Institute of Synthesis at the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Dorothy and Yuhan Bao, from iGEM Foundation.
Dominic Yang, iGEM Ambassador to Asia & Oceania
"During the event, I had brief conversations with some teams. In summary, most teams are now in the experimental design and promotion stages. Most of their questions were about filling out the safety form and whether the selected chassis organisms meet the safety requirements. For this, I guided the teams to browse the safety form requirements and whitelist on the iGEM website for a preliminary solution."
Some teams mentioned the need for online resources such as webinars. In response, Dominic guided the teams to better use Slack and Instagram and recommended that they subscribe to iGEM's newslettes. At this stage, many teams have doubts about the process of applying for European visas in Mainland China. This is an issue that Dominic has observed for a while. At the venue, he provided the teams in need with a list of materials and appointment procedures based on his experience. He also had a preliminary discussion with the members of the CCiC Executive Committee on whether it is necessary to hold an online meeting to answer questions about visa applications. The follow-up situation will be reported based on progress.
Finally, regarding team recruitment, Dominic noticed that in Macau, among many universities, only the University of Macau has its own iGEM team. Therefore, at the venue, he established preliminary contact with the Macau University of Science and Technology through the introduction of the University of Macau. He plans to visit the Macau University of Science and Technology to give iGEM presentations and recruit potential teams after September. Additionally, he contacted the Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, a Chinese university strong in agriculture and forestry but without an iGEM team. It is tentatively scheduled to visit the school for presentations in August. The School of Food Science of Northwest University also does not have an iGEM team, so he made preliminary contact with them and plan to visit in August.
In short, Dominic participated in this event on behalf of iGEM and established connections with more Chinese teams, making it easier for me to help them. At the same time, he witnessed the development of China's synthetic biology and iGEM communities and actively promoted them on international social media platforms. He also successfully contacted three different institutions and intend to visit them to give iGEM presentations in the future.
To find more information about the iGEM Ambassadors for Asia and Oceania and regional synbio activities visit our Asia and Oceania webpage. Learn more about the Ambassador Program here.
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