Grant reports
5th December 2025
The latest recipients of RSB Regional Event Grants report on how they used the funding
DR DOMINIC GILCHRIST MRSB, LECTURER IN MICROBIOLOGY, TEESSIDE UNIVERSITY
Try Your Hand at Being a Biologist, August 2025
Visitors were welcomed into BIOS, our teaching facility at Teesside University, to take part in a series of practical activities that reflected techniques commonly used in biological research. The event, Try Your Hand at Being a Biologist, featured hands-on stations covering core methods in molecular biology, microbiology and microscopy.
Twenty participants carried out DNA extraction, discussed how PCR is used in COVID-19 testing while observing a running gel, and explored gene expression through green fluorescent protein transformation in bacteria. Attendees used Gram staining to prepare and view bacterial samples under the microscope. Another station invited them to search for tardigrades in moss. Each activity was supported by academics and technical staff.
Participants moved between stations at their own pace, and conversations ranged from cell structure and microbial classification to the role of biology in healthcare, environmental monitoring and biotechnology. Visitors came from a range of backgrounds, from students to retired academics. Several commented that the experience helped clarify what biologists do and how the subject connects to everyday life.
Funded by the RSB Regional Events Grant, the event aimed to create a space for curiosity, conversation and direct engagement with biological techniques in a working laboratory environment.
DR DAVID WAREING MRSB, LECTURER IN MEDICAL MICROBIOLOGY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL LANCASHIRE
Biology North West Schools’ Quiz, June 2025
Teams of four A level students from 10 schools attended the 26th annual Schools’ Quiz event held at the School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences at the University of Central Lancashire’s Preston Campus. Question masters provided nine diverse challenges for the teams, which were focused on hands-on observational biology.
Students enjoyed the range of challenges, seeing and handling fascinating marine-biology samples, conducting stimulus conditioning experiments with garden snails and discussing neuroscience with experts.
The whole group gathered in the Foster Lecture Theatre where the winners were revealed. All participants were presented with a certificate of attendance and a commemorative mug, with the top four teams winning books on a range of biology topics. With a drumroll from the audience, the runner-up and winning schools were announced, with prizes of a binocular microscope and full-size human skeleton kindly provided and presented by the Dean of the School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, Dr Clare Lawrence.
Thanks to the question masters, the students and the RSB for the Regional Events Grant.
DR ANDREW THOMAS FRSB, DIRECTOR OF THE BETWEEN THE TREES FESTIVAL
Eco-Hub at the Between the Trees Festival, August 2025
Located adjacent to the Merthyr Mawr National Nature Reserve, the Between the Trees Festival aims to promote a deeper understanding of biological systems and encourage sustainable practices that lead to a healthy planet. With around 1,800 visitors, the festival’s Eco-Hub is a distinctive open-air classroom that encourages attendees to participate in a range of nature-based activities by delivering ecological education and hands-on workshops in the midst of a living woodland ecosystem.
A grant from the RSB helped to fund prestigious speakers at the Eco-Hub, with the classroom space becoming an area dedicated to biological investigation, creativity, ecological talks, workshops and art displays. Themed around pollination and mycorrhizal fungal networks, all sessions were fully booked and the feedback was excellent. The moth-trap session revealed the wonder of pollinators, while the hub showcased a local butterfly conservation group and seagrass repopulation company Project Seagrass. There was also a debate on the pollution in the Wye, Lugg and Usk rivers.
A workshop exploring the microscopic world of pollination, plant biology and insect anatomy was also a big hit, with attendees creating their own microscope slides, using microscopes and recording their observations. Other activities included creating clay sculptures of pollen grains, and an art installation demonstrating the interconnectedness of mycorrhizal networks and trees.
DR MODUPE STELLA AYILARA MRSB, RESEARCHER AT NORTH-WEST UNIVERSITY, SOUTH AFRICA
Unlocking the Hidden Power of Microbes for a Greener Future, May 2025
An inspiring one-hour workshop, entitled Unlocking the Hidden Power of Microbes for a Greener Future, brought together students, early-career researchers and bioscience enthusiasts at North-West University, Mafikeng, South Africa.
Supported by the RSB, the event highlighted the unseen but essential role of microbes in sustainable development. Participants explored the fascinating world of microbial innovations through a hands-on activity that demonstrated how naturally occurring microbes can be harnessed to improve soil fertility, reduce chemical inputs in agriculture and enhance carbon sequestration. Attendees observed microbial activity under microscopes, and tested pH and nutrient shifts influenced by microbial communities. These demonstrations illustrated real-world applications of plant-microbe interactions and microbial biofertilisers in sustainable agriculture. One of the most memorable insights shared was how specific native soil microbes in South Africa have been shown to increase crop yields while restoring degraded land.
It served as a timely reminder of the profound biological forces at play beneath our feet.
