Integrating DNA Technology into the Classroom and the Community through hands-on Enviro-STEM Learning activities

What is BioBarcode?

BioBarcode Australia exists to provide a unique opportunity to bring DNA technology into classrooms and the community. We use real biotech equipment, link it to real science projects feature real scientists as role models for the next generation. Together these provide a unique Enviro-STEM Learning opportunity.

We offer a citizen science species identification project, The Australian Barcode for Life Project, which everyone can get involved with. The project is based around using the DNA of organisms to identify them before we lose them. It’s a fun, practical way of saving our precious biodiversity using of the most crucial coding language for life on earth – DNA.

Pauline Charman Director and Founder of BioBarcode
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What Our Students Say

Professional Learning Workshops

BioBarcode offers teachers and laboratory technicians opportunities to train and develop confident skill sets to teach with biotechnology. Our sessions are offered throughout the year, check out our upcoming workshops here!

Latest News

BioBarcode will be presenting at or attending the following events in 2024:

EventDatesLocation
National Science Week10-18 August 2024Country-wide
STAWA Future Science Conference02 December 2024Edith Cowan University, Perth
Do get in contact via the BioBarcode website if you’d like to arrange to meet up at any of them!

WA Bug Barcode Blitz: A Two-Way Citizen Science Adventure in Regional WA

This National Science Week we’re taking our science to regional WA in an exciting citizen science project that sees participants collecting, cataloguing and DNA barcoding bugs from across the state!  In the spirit of this year’s theme “Saving species – it’s not all about sustainability”, we are sending the message … We have to name them, before we can save them! We use DNA barcoding like a high tech detective tool for nature.

Pauline Charman will be running the virtual 4 hour science lesson online from Murdoch University on Wednesday 14 and Saturday 17 August, with the help of Science Ambassadors Charlize Kazmer and Jeremy Beerkens and guest scientists from the Harry Butler Institute – the arachnologist, Professor Volker Framenau and entomologist, Associate Professor Robert Emery. All equipment, reagents and instructions will be sent to participants before the day, enabling them to authentically process 8 insect or spider samples. The samples will then be sent to Perth for genetic sequencing. Who knows, they may even find a new species!  For nearly all participants it will be a unique opportunity to be DNA scientists for the day.

Remote communities as far away as Kalumbaru, Looma along with Leonora and Albany will have the opportunity to share Indigenous knowledge of the invertebrates collected on country while trying out the high tech tools involved in the molecular identification of their samples during the live streamed presentation.  After all the samples are sequenced in Perth, there will be an additional one hour webinar a week later to reveal the results to participants and show them how to navigate the online data bases that store this vital genetic data so crucial to the future of our species.

If you’d like to join us, check out the details on the National Science Week website!

This event would not be possible without the generous funding from the WA Inspiring Australia grant program for National Science Week, with additional sponsorship from the Harry Butler Institute providing live streaming support and a video of the process, the Australian Genome Research Facility (AGRF) who are genetically sequencing the samples, Promega Australia who have provided reagents and local business Fisher Biotec who have provided lab consumables. 

BioBarcode spent a fantastic day with the Harry Butler Institute at the Coogee Live Festival, City of Cockburn, WA, chatting with families about how biotechnology is solving many of our big environmental problems. Our unique pipette art kits captivated the young minds – the budding ‘Harry Butlers’ – as they discovered the joy of painting using mini pipettes.
BioBarcode attended STAWA event Dec 2023. There was a presentation session & a display including our research grade equipment.

Free Resources

MiniPCRBio

A very large part of BioBarcode’s existence is thanks to the innovative, research grade portable equipment designed and manufactured by MiniPCR Bio. The thermocyclers (PCR machines) and the BlueGel Electrophoresis tanks have offered a user friendly way to teach molecular biology that mimics how real scientists work in the lab. This website is full of fantastic resources for teachers! Tutorials, videos, Case Studies – the list goes on! These guys wanted to make DNA technologies accessible for everyone and they really are succeeding.

iNaturalist Australia (App)

iNaturalist Australia is a top tool for environmental discovery that allows you to explore and contribute to biodiversity knowledge. Your findings, once uploaded, support global scientific efforts by joining the Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility’s databases. NB: You are required to register for full access to this app and its aimed at an adult audience because of privacy and security issues. iNaturalist’s free app SEEK does not require full registration, so is therefore more suitable for younger audiences. [This app is extensively used for BioBarcode’s ABFL Citizen Science project]

In2Science

In2science places STEM university students into high schools as peer mentors, explaining Australian curriculum-linked topics for high school students. We do love great role-model science ambassadors!