The European Learning Laboratory for the Life Sciences [ELLS] is an education facility which has been created to bring secondary school teachers into the research lab for a unique hands-on encounter with state-of-the-art molecular biology techniques and to give scientists a chance to work with teachers, helping to bridge the widening gap between research and schools. The facility is located in the unique environment of one of the most renowned research institutions in the world, the European Molecular Biology Laboratory [EMBL], with an international staff of young, energetic scientists.