Keynote Speaker
Matthew DeLisa, William L. Lewis Professor of Engineering, Cornell University, Director of the Cornell Institute of Biotechnology

Sessions

• New to the Mid-Atlantic  (chair: Bill Bentley, Maryland)
• Cell-Free Expression Systems (chair:  Mark Styczynski, Georgia Tech)
• Engineered Living Materials (chair:  Sara Molinari, Maryland)
• Synthetic Biology for Agriculture and the Environment (chair: Scott Lenaghan, Center for Agricultural Synthetic Biology)
• Measurements and Standards for Synthetic Biology  (chair: Sam Schaffter, NIST)

Symposium Chair
Sam Schaffter (NIST)

Symposium Co-Chairs
Bill Bentley (UMD), Keith Kozminski (Virginia), Sara Molinari (UMD)

Schedule: Registration will open at 2:00pm on January 8, with Welcome Remarks beginning at 3:00pm. The symposium will conclude by 4pm on January 9. There will be a poster session on January 8.

Poster Sessions: Poster instructions will be posted soon.

Location: The symposium will be held in The Stamp, University of Maryland, 3972 Campus Dr, College Park, MD

Transportation and Parking: This information will be posted soon.

Accommodations: This information will be posted soon.

Travel Awards: A limited number of travel awards are available for students and early career individuals. To be considered for a travel award, check the appropriate box on the symposium registration form. Individuals traveling from beyond the immediate vicinity of the host institution and who are presenting their research are given first consideration for travel awards.

This NSF-sponsored symposium showcases research and opportunities in all areas of synthetic biology across the Mid-Atlantic region, welcoming researchers, educators, entrepreneurs, and leaders in academia, government, and the private sector who share a common interest in synthetic biology and its enabling technologies. The symposium will feature platform presentations, discussion panel, poster session, and time to network.

You are welcome to visit our website anytime to find the latest updates on opportunities, events, our activities, or other SynBio activities within the region. If you are a researcher, educator, entrepreneur, leader, business, program, or organization, consider joining the network. It’s free. Being a network member enables receipt of e-mails about events and opportunities specific to your interests, enables you to post information on this site relevant to our community, and provides eligibility for network awards. Membership is also an opportunity to maximize your connectivity to others in the network with similar or complementary interests. We especially encourage students and early career researchers to join. Not resident or working within the Mid-Atlantic region? You still may join the network.

Synthetic biology (SynBio) is the practical application of natural sciences, technology, and engineering to facilitate and accelerate the design, modification, and production of living organisms or cellular components that are implementable solutions to regional, national, and global problems, in a bioethical and environmentally-sensitive manner.

Supported by a National Science Foundation Research Coordination Network grant, our goals are to i) capacity map the Mid-Atlantic region to identify synergistic strengths and research complementarities, ii) create strategic research networks, iii) to develop and diversify the STEM workforce with particular regard to synthetic biology, and iv) to develop entrepreneurial opportunities.