Regional Offices Activities: APR-JUN 2023

Andean

  • 4 Colombian students visited Leiden Observatory through the  ERASMUS+INTERNATIONAL mobility project
  • 3rd Workshop on Astronomy for Equity, Inclusion, and Diversity will be a parallel activity during the LARIM meeting in Montevideo in December 2023
  • The upcoming IV Workshop Astronomía en los Andes will focus on “Engaged communities in development through Astrotourism”. The main goal of this IV Workshop is to promote high-quality, responsible and innovative tourism of stars in the Andean Region, especially in rural areas where it could become a real driving force for local economies.

Arab

  • The office organized, with the Jordanian Astronomical Society (JAS), the Arab Union for Astronomy and Space Science (AUASS) and some other Jordanian & Arab institutions, several public lectures, seminars, and courses via Zoom

  • The office is organising the 1st Interregional Astronomical Summer School (1IRASS) together  with the South West and Central Asian Regional Office

East Africa

  • On 24 June 2023, the East African ROAD director delivered a keynote speech at the Everything Astronomy online show organized by the Ghana planetarium
  • The Regional Office contributed to the organization of the African Planetarium Association (APA) Biannual Workshop, scheduled to take place from 11-12 Nov 2023 in conjunction with the IAU386 symposium
  • The Joint Ministerial Ethiopia-South Africa Science and Technology Joint Consultative Workshop was held from 23-26 May 2023 in Addis Ababa. East African ROAD played a significant role in coordinating the joint ministerial meeting
  • The East Africa Science Stars ROAD show was held from 13th to 21st May 2023 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The ROAD show was organized by the African Science Stars program (ASAP) Magazine in collaboration with the Space Science and Geospatial Institute (SSGI) and East African ROAD

East Asia

Europe

  • The office is preparing for upcoming visits within the Erasmus+ Twinning programme

North America

  • NA ROAD Governing Council held its first in-person strategic planning meeting at the Adler planetarium in Chicago
  • The Office has selected 10 Women and Girls in Astronomy Projects (WGAP) across the North America region. Each of them will receive $1,000 mini grants and will be part of a Women’s and Girls in Astronomy Program WGAP Network that is expected to grow in the upcoming years. This project has been funded by the Heising-Simons Foundation.

Portuguese Language

  • Preparation of Strategic Plan for the period 2024-2029 is under progress
  • During the Science Communication Congress in Bragança, Portugal, from May 3rd to 5th, 2023, PLOAD coordinator in Mozambique engaged in various activities
  • In conjunction with the E3 Global project PLOAD is creating a planetarium session to be used in the planetarium of the Sundy Science Space in Príncipe Island (São Tomé and Príncipe) about the solar eclipse observed in 1919

South East Asia

  • MoU between the Universidade Nacional Timor Lorosa’e (UNTL), Timor-Leste and NARIT was signed, aimed at strengthening the collaboration between two institutions in the fields of astronomy and space science
  • South East Asia (SEA) ROAD Outreach team organised the Inclusive astronomy workshop for 50 visually-impaired students from Bangkok School for the Blind
  • SEAROAD organised the Summer School 2023 in Radio Astronomy and Technology with the 40m Thai National Radio Telescope in Chiang Mai

South West And Central Asia

  • Astronomical School Lectures programme was active and 30 Armenian schools were covered by 4 lecturers
  • NASE Armenia project is running during June 2023
  • Three Armenian astronomers benefited from the Erasmus+ grant between European ROAD and South West and Central Asian ROAD
  • Together with the Arab World ROAD, the office is organising the 1st Interregional Astronomical Summer School (1IRASS), which will also be the 3rd Regional Astronomical Summer School

Southern Africa

  • SAROAD Coordinator participated in EuroPlanet Research Infrastructure meeting (ERIM 2023) and spoke on Astronomy for Development in a session called “New Frontiers of Space Science in Africa”
  • Participated in the Astroscience conference held from 1-2 June 2023 in Lusaka, Zambia
  • The ISWI Space Weather School will take place from 26-30 September 2023 in Lusaka, Zambia, aimed at MSc and PhD students based in Africa

West Africa

  • West African ROAD celebrated the 2023 International Day of Light Outreach under the theme “Light Is the Key to Sustainability” at two secondary schools
  • West African ROAD in partnership with Okany Chioma trained over female 80 students on capacity building and astronomy development under the project ‘Girl-child Astronomy Development Workshop’
  • Plans are underway for the 2024 edition of the Pan African School for Emerging Astronomers PASEA