For the past 12 years, October has been recognized as International Biosafety and Biosecurity Month — a time to shine the spotlight on biological safety training, set time aside for reviewing safe laboratory practices, and support responsible and ethical biological research.
To mark the occasion, the Environmental Health & Safety (EHS) office hosted three tabling events with EHS Safety Manager, Steven Burns, and Biological Safety Specialists, to inform and remind faculty, staff and students of this critical component of the research community at UH. EHS held two events at the University of Houston main campus and one at the UH Sugar Land campus.
Over the course of three days, the team engaged with 178 attendees, reflecting strong interest in and growing awareness of biosafety initiatives.
Visitors to the tables were greeted with a variety of safety-themed giveaways, including first aid kits, syringe-shaped pens, and blood droplet-shaped stress balls — fun and functional reminders of lab safety.
Steven Burns emphasized the value of this outreach opportunity for face-to-face engagement:
“One is to bring awareness to biosafety and biosecurity,” said Burns. “The other thing is, it’s an opportunity for us to get out there, put a face with a name, and talk to faculty, staff and students about things we’re highlighting during this month.”
EHS Program Manager, Casimira Contreras, added that these events are especially important for faculty, staff and students working in labs, as they offer a chance to ask direct questions to subject matter experts.
“We want to make this a two-way conversation and make it more comfortable for anybody that has questions,” said Contreras.
Among the attendees was Mary Adesina, a PhD student in Cell and Molecular Biology, who appreciated the reminders and insights shared by the EHS team.
“It’s very important that they’re here because a lot of times, we as scientists get carried away with lab stuff and may forget the minor details that concern lab safety,” said Adesina. “Every time EHS safety specialists come into the labs, there’s always one or two things I pick up from conversations with them.”
To learn more about EHS and their role in promoting safety across campus, visit the Environmental Health & Safety website.