Image from: <ahref="https://ejatlas.org/conflict/nitrogen-crisis-and-farmers-protests"target="_blank"style="text-decoration: none;"onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'"onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'">The Global Atlas of Environmental Justice. </a>.
Picture by Natronaut team member Menéndez-Abascal Sitges, 2024. Created with <ahref="https://www.biorender.com/"style="text-decoration: none;"onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'"onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'"> BioRender.com </a>.
Picture by Natronaut team member Menéndez-Abascal Sitges, 2024. Created with <ahref="https://www.biorender.com/"style="text-decoration: none;"onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'"onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'"> BioRender.com </a>.
<pstyle="color: #333;"> The postcards had two sides, a front side with a cool design and a short text, and a back side that included a summary of the main goals for each project. After all designs were submitted, the teams that participated got in contact to translate each other’s postcards into their local languages.
Postcard created by Natronaut team member Natasha Nunez, using the PRO visual design suite from our sponsor, <ahref="https://www.canva.com/"style="text-decoration: none;"onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'"onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'"> Canva</a>. The postcard incorporates a piece of Maastricht, seen with the introduction of the famous bridges, and considering Natronaut's colour palette.
Postcard created by Natronaut team member Natasha Nunez, using the Pro version of the visual design suite from our sponsor, <ahref="https://www.canva.com/"style="text-decoration: none;"onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'"onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'"> Canva</a>. The postcard incorporates a piece of Maastricht, seen with the introduction of the famous bridges, and considering Natronaut's colour palette.
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<h4style="color: #396d7e;">Agronomic Sector Receptiveness and Concerns</h4>
<pstyle="color: #333;">The interview questions followed the company’s presentation. We were curious to know if we were the first people approaching the fertilizer company concerned about the excess nitrogen and if they were ever approached about possible solutions to the problem. Surprisingly, it was the first they ever heard about this type of concern and solution. Another point that we brought up was the nature of our microorganism, a Genetically Modified Organism (GMO), and how this could be received within the agricultural community. Di Majo explained to us that GMOs might not be a scary approach to farmers as long as farmers are shown the virtuous circular approach behind our project and how our product would benefit them. Indeed, they would benefit from the discards of another product for which they are already paying. Thus, our product would be of value to them, markedly sustainable in terms of environment and economy. The produced SCPs are aimed to be given as livestock feed, which will thus, mainly be targeted at livestock farmers. An example of how they implemented this mindset to sell their products was the <i>Potato study</i>.
<pstyle="color: #333;">The interview questions followed the company’s presentation. We were curious to know if we were the first people approaching the fertilizer company concerned about the excess nitrogen and if they were ever approached about possible solutions to the problem. Surprisingly, it was the first they ever heard about this type of concern and solution. Another point that we brought up was the nature of our microorganism, a GMO, and how this could be received within the agricultural community. Di Majo explained to us that GMOs might not be a scary approach to farmers as long as farmers are shown the virtuous circular approach behind our project and how our product would benefit them. Indeed, they would benefit from the discards of another product for which they are already paying. Thus, our product would be of value to them, markedly sustainable in terms of environment and economy. The produced SCPs are aimed to be given as livestock feed, which will thus, mainly be targeted at livestock farmers. An example of how they implemented this mindset to sell their products was the <i>Potato study</i>.
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<pstyle="color: #333;">Another important study performed by Unimer was the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to provide a complete and accurate assessment of a product’s environmental impact from raw materials to the end of its life cycle and to identify the aspects of the product life cycle that can be improved upon in terms of sustainability. Indeed, the carbon footprint (kg/CO<sub>2</sub> eq) of UNIMER’s products minimizes it up to -46% compared to mineral emissions, especially in the production part. This gave us insight into our project and future adjustments we can make to improve the final product.
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<pstyle="color: #333;">Afterward, a 10-minute presentation resembling the Grand Jamboree’s style was scheduled for all teams. The session was very useful for our competitors in many ways. Firstly, it was helpful to understand the level of in-depth preparedness needed for the Grand Jamboree, as well as to practice public speaking in front of an audience. Secondly, the feedback provided by the jury was greatly appreciated: we received constructive feedback on the real-life application of the chamber, hence we paid more attention to the kill-switch part. Moreover, the team was addressed with concerns about the length of our over 12,000 bp plasmid. It was explained to the jury the choice of assembly method and the different plans the team had to overcome any challenge regarding the size of the plasmid. Lastly, the mock jamboree was helpful in understanding other team’s projects as well as in listening to the feedback they received.
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<h4style="color: #396d7e;"><b>Figure 9.</b>Natronaut Presentation at the European iGEM 2024 MeetUp</h4>
<h4style="color: #396d7e;"><b>Figure 9.</b>Natronaut Presentation at the European iGEM 2024 MeetUp</h4>
<pstyle="color: #333;">After the presentation session was concluded, all teams had lunch together. This was an opportunity to network and exchange ideas. Afterward, the RePET team gave us a tour of their laboratories and the faculty of biology. We thank the RePet for organizing and hosting the event. The environment was welcoming, professional, and insightful.
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<h4style="color: #396d7e;"><b>Figure 10.</b>Natronaut at the European iGEM 2024 MeetUp</h4>
<h4style="color: #396d7e;"><b>Figure 10.</b>Natronaut at the European iGEM 2024 MeetUp</h4>
