SULSA sponsorship for iGEM 2009 competition

Registration for the International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) 2009 competition opened on 18 February 2009, and teams from Scottish Universities are now invited to apply to SULSA for sponsorship to help finance their participation in 2009.

iGEM began in 2003 as a course at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and has since grown into an international competition run by MIT, where teams of undergraduates work alongside established researchers and academics to produce biological systems that function within living cells.

Participating teams specify, design, build, and test simple biological systems made from standard, interchangeable biological parts. Teams present their projects at the iGEM Championship Jamboree held at MIT.
iGEM is now recognised as the premier synthetic biology competition involving undergraduates, and is expected to grow from 84 teams in 2008 to more than 120 teams in 2009, with teams from N. America, Latin America, Europe and Asia.

Each iGEM team requires at least two “instructors” (PhD qualified, in a teaching or research position already) and 6-12 undergraduates.
If you are an instructor of a team in a Scottish University, and you are interested in applying to SULSA for sponsorship, then please download an application form from this page.

Up to £10,000 per team is available, subject to the number of successful applicants.

The deadline for applications is 30 April 2009.

For more information about iGEM, visit the iGEM 2009 website by clicking here.

To download the form click here.