Science in Students' Hands

We put portable DNA sequencers in the hands of K-12 students. They collect soil, water, and air samples, then read the environmental DNA (eDNA) — the genetic material organisms shed into their surroundings — by extracting DNA and running Oxford Nanopore MinION devices in their own classrooms, mapping the life living invisibly around them. Our alpha pilot launches in summer 2026 with a cohort at Venice High School (LAUSD) — the first chapter of a shared California eDNA Atlas built sample by sample.

From there, we're building toward a federated network of schools, universities, and community partners — coordinated through a cooperative governance model where every contributor keeps ownership of their own data.

We treat education, agriculture, and environmental science as one connected system: the same portable device, the same protocols, the same atlas — whether the sample comes from a schoolyard, a farm, or a stretch of coastline.

Here's the kind of discovery we're building toward: a tenth-grader takes a soil sample from a schoolyard planter, sequences it, and finds fungal species that also turn up in samples from nearby schools and farms — a pattern no single classroom would have spotted alone. A shared atlas is what makes that connection visible.

Data governance follows FAIR principles (findable, accessible, interoperable, reusable) and CARE principles (collective benefit, authority to control, responsibility, ethics) with OCAP protocols for indigenous community data. Every contributor retains sovereignty over their samples.