Join us to Unfold Your World and discover the beauty of nature’s molecular wonders: proteins
It’s due to the fascinating structures and life-shaping role of proteins that we’ve come to think of them as nature’s molecular wonders.
From regulating human growth and emotions to governing the migratory behaviour of birds, proteins perform crucial functions which are inextricably linked with the way they fold and unfold.
Now EMBL’s Science Education and Public Engagement (SEPE) office, together with the Protein Databank Europe (PDBe) team, are inviting young people to discover more about proteins by taking part in our new project, Unfold Your World: Nature’s Molecular Wonders.
Bringing together art and science in an innovative way, the project is aimed at young learners aged 14-18, and their science or art teachers. Unfold Your World can be delivered within biology lessons,, set up as a collaborative cross-curricular school initiative, or undertaken outside school time by individual students or science clubs.
The project team has developed free, classroom-ready resources to inspire young people to reflect on the beauty of protein structures, discover the important role proteins play in our bodies and nature, and create and submit artworks based on their insights. All submitted artworks will be displayed in an online gallery, with selected pieces showcased in EMBL’s flagship exhibition The World of Molecular Biology. There are also dozens of prizes worth €100 to be won.
Participants need a teacher or other trusted adult to support their submission, but can otherwise explore the themes and create their artwork independently. To support this, live drop-in tutorial sessions will be offered via Zoom in May, June and July.
The deadline for artwork submissions is 31 August 2024, with the exhibition planned for autumn/winter. Visit the Unfold Your World website: https://www.embl.org/unfold-your-world/ to find out more, see this Science in School article: https://www.scienceinschool.org/article/2024/unfold-your-world/, or contact the project team on proteinart@embl.org.
