The All India iGEM Meet (AIIM) provided a platform for all current iGEM teams to share ideas and prepare for the Jamboree through the mock judging sessions. Additionally, it offered an in-person interface between the Ambassadors, iGEM Epic, current and future iGEM participants, industry leaders, researchers and a lot more. Guest talks and networking sessions also helped expand the horizons of all participants.
- Event Date: July 22nd-25th, 2022
- iGEM Representative: Kamal Pany, iGEM Ambassador to Asia & Oceania
The audience was introduced to the iGEM community and ambassador program and asked questions about how to join. The roundtable discussion with the teams helped identify critical points of interest in their projects and gave them insights on how to take the project forward.
The roundtable discussion with startup founders and researchers presented us with India's current synbio startup scenario. It gave us information and contacts interested in applying to the industry and academia steering groups. An in-person all India iGEM meet after two years was lovely to see. It definitely led to some morale boost for the teams and organizers alike. Key takeaways from the feedback session were that teams tend to struggle with funding, and the most significant barrier to entry is registration and other fees. Teams would benefit from more in-person sessions and synbio workshops.
A portion of iGEM teams from India are not from research institutes but from engineering institutes. These have a more challenging time convincing their college administration for funding for synbio projects. On top of this, they do not have established research facilities, lab space, and more. One of the suggestions was for premier research institutes to offer open or community lab spaces to nurture more synbio projects.
Kamal Pany, iGEM Ambassador to Asia & Oceania
“It was amazing to see an in-person iGEM meetup after the Pandemic. All the teams seemed to enjoy discussing their project and learning more about synbio. The entire event was perfect for networking opportunities and career growth as well.”
To find more information about the iGEM Ambassadors & Promoters for Asia & Oceania and regional synbio activities visit our Asia & Oceania webpage. Learn more about the Ambassador Program here.
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