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Team:Exeter/Stakeholders
From 2014.igem.org
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Stakeholders
These were people from a wide range of backgrounds for whom our project may impact or interest. This could be from a research, social or economic standpoint. Contacting these groups and individuals allowed us to understand the need that our project was satisfying, whilse also allowing us to structure and direct our project in the most efficient way possible.
Though the total number of people that could be affected by our work is vast, here we summarise the main groups/people that we identified and contacted whilst working on our E.R.A.S.E. project.
DSTL
As the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory division of the MOD, DSTL were not only a strong stakeholder in terms of being impacted by our work, but also incredibly helpful in terms of advice on project direction and scope. The division has previously worked on bioremediation of TNT and was happy to visit us at the University to answer some questions that we had and discuss our work. They also advised us on the health and safety, as well as practical aspects of the project.
Professor Christine Gosden
Christine is an expert in explosive remediation who works around the world to assess the threat explosives pose to public health and safety, and develop responses to these threats. Christine was happy to answer the questions that we had, especially ones involving the key aspects that a solution would have to uphold to be practically feasible in her field.
These qualities included:
- Safe to use.
- Easy for non-specialists to apply.
- Quick (on a time-scale of days, not decades).
- Effective.
- Sensitive.
- The long term effects of the project on the environment must also be considered.
Doctor Chris French
Chris is a professor at the university of Edinburgh. He has not only led his own research project into TNT degradation over a period of ten years, but he was also involved in the Edinburgh iGEM team that investigated the possibility of explosive degradation in 2009.
Chris was able to talk to us about some of the problems that he encountered during his time in the field and was especially helpful in some of the more logistical aspects of our project, such as ordering and working with explosive material.
Doctor Jim Spain
Jim is a professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology, USA. Jim was able to talk to us about the need for our project in America. In Europe it would not be possible to release our modified E. coli at present due to strict regulations. However, in the USA the law surrounding synthetic biology is much more relaxed, hence the practical potential for our project to be used is much higher. Jim was able to inform us on the aspects of our project that would be essential for the practical success of our bioremediation solution.
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