Amanar program announcement

The following is from an article in the website of the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC).

Amanar , which means Pleiades in Berber, is a project of dissemination of Astronomy , to inspire the Saharawi community through the wonders of our Universe and promote peace, mutual understanding and a sense of citizenship under the same sky. 

This initiative aims to stimulate teachers and support schools in the refugee camps of Tindouf (Algeria) through training courses and the donation of educational resources. The visit to the refugee camps will take place in October 2019 and will also serve to study, record and disseminate the astronomical knowledge of the Saharawi population, which are still used today by drivers and shepherds to orient themselves in the desert. In addition, telescopes will be taken to the schools visited so that they can organize their own astronomical observations in a continuous and autonomous way.

Likewise, the project will promote educational and recreational activities, astronomical observations and visits to the Observatories of the Canary Islands with the Saharawi children who visit the Islands in the summer, through the Vacation in Peace program .

Amanar is an initiative conceived by the international organization GalileoMobile , in collaboration with the Canarian Association for Friendship with the Saharawi People . The project is co-financed by the IAC and the International Astronomical Union (IAU), through its Office of Astronomy for Development and the commemorations of its 100th anniversary, having been selected as a “Special Project” within this framework. Amanar program 2019Amanar 2019