Flagship 1 Archives - IAU Office of Astronomy for Development https://astro4dev.org/category/flagship-1/ Astronomy for a better world! Wed, 22 Apr 2026 12:50:29 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://astro4dev.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/cropped-03_OAD_symbol_colour_2-32x32.jpg Flagship 1 Archives - IAU Office of Astronomy for Development https://astro4dev.org/category/flagship-1/ 32 32 Astrotourism and Conservation https://astro4dev.org/astrotourism-and-conservation/ Mon, 23 Feb 2026 13:31:29 +0000 https://astro4dev.org/?p=31014 Dark skies are not only a scientific resource, but a social, cultural, environmental, and economic asset. They are living heritage –  essential to ecosystems, deeply woven into cultural identities, and increasingly recognised as catalysts for sustainable livelihoods through responsible tourism. Artificial light at night continues to increase globally, washing out the stars and disrupting natural [...]

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]]> Video: Australia’s Cultural Night Sky https://astro4dev.org/video-australias-cultural-night-sky/ Mon, 08 Dec 2025 12:38:35 +0000 https://astro4dev.org/?p=30703 Koya Aboriginal Corporation and Dr John Goldsmith / Celestial Visions have released a film of their project, “Australia’s Cultural Night Sky: Culture, Creativity and Community at Lake Ballard, Western Australia”. The video documents the journey and activities of 12 Aboriginal high-school students, visiting the remote, dark-sky location of Lake Ballard, in the Goldfields region of [...]

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]]> IAU OAD Supported Initiative Wins Europlanet Prize for Public Engagement https://astro4dev.org/iau-oad-supported-initiative-wins-europlanet-prize-for-public-engagement/ Wed, 15 Oct 2025 08:40:40 +0000 https://astro4dev.org/?p=30556 Red de Estudiantes Colombianos en Astronomía (RECA) Educación, a Colombian non-profit that brings science, astronomy and planetary science to schools and communities across Colombia has been awarded the 2025 Europlanet Prize for Public Engagement. The award was presented at the the Europlanet Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science (EPSC–DPS) Joint [...]

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]]> Astronomy Project Strengthens Science Capacity in 110 Rural Colombian Schools https://astro4dev.org/astronomy-project-strengthens-science-capacity-in-110-rural-colombian-schools/ Tue, 23 Sep 2025 08:07:42 +0000 https://astro4dev.org/?p=30608 Bringing Astronomy to Rural Communities of Colombia (BARCo) supported teachers in remote areas by providing hands-on astronomy resources designed for classrooms with limited infrastructure, often lacking labs, consistent electricity, or internet access. The project equipped educators with ready-to-use, engaging materials that make astronomy both accessible and exciting. By reaching historically underserved rural schools, including those [...]

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]]> Indigenous Students Encounter the Cosmos at Lake Ballard, Australia https://astro4dev.org/indigenous-students-encounter-the-cosmos-at-lake-ballard-australia/ Wed, 10 Sep 2025 10:44:28 +0000 https://astro4dev.org/?p=30264 The Ballard project visited a remote area, dark-sky site that enabled a group of Aboriginal students, from Governor Stirling Senior High School (aged up to 16 yrs), to participate in a one-week journey (between 18-22 August 2025), to Lake Ballard and Morapoi Station. Lake Ballard is an important dark-sky remote-area landscape in Western Australia, located [...]

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]]> OAD Participation at the IAU Symposium on Indigenous Astronomy in the Space Age https://astro4dev.org/oad-participation-at-the-iau-symposium-on-indigenous-astronomy-in-the-space-age/ Mon, 21 Jul 2025 14:54:23 +0000 https://astro4dev.org/?p=30171 The International Astronomical Union’s Office of Astronomy for Development (OAD) participated in the ongoing IAU Symposium on Indigenous Astronomy in the Space Age, highlighting the role of astronomy in sustainable development through astrotourism initiatives. Dr. Joyful Mdhluli delivered a presentation on the OAD’s Astrotourism flagship project, outlining how astrotourism serves as a catalyst for local [...]

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]]> “A Cosmos of Languages” https://astro4dev.org/a-cosmos-of-languages/ Wed, 02 Jul 2025 13:59:25 +0000 https://astro4dev.org/?p=30121 As part of their OAD funded project, “Australia’s Cultural Night Sky: Culture, Creativity and Community at Lake Ballard, Western Australia“, Dr John Goldsmith in collaboration with Koya Aboriginal Corporation developed a festival exhibit “A Cosmos of Languages”. The exhibit was presented as part of the Denmark Arts Festival, Western Australia’s longest running community arts festival. [...]

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]]> OAD attends National Astro-Tourism Stakeholder Workshop in South Africa https://astro4dev.org/oad-attends-national-astro-tourism-stakeholder-workshop-in-south-africa/ Tue, 22 Apr 2025 11:04:51 +0000 https://astro4dev.org/?p=29973 Members of the OAD team participated in the National Astro-Tourism Broader Stakeholder Workshop held on 2–3 April 2025 in Carnarvon, Northern Cape, South Africa. Hosted by the Department of Tourism and the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation, the workshop focused on the implementation of South Africa’s Astro-Tourism Strategy. The two-day event brought together stakeholders [...]

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]]> First Phase of Women AstroPreneurs Collective Underway in India https://astro4dev.org/first-phase-of-women-astropreneurs-collective-underway-in-india/ Thu, 17 Apr 2025 11:56:23 +0000 https://astro4dev.org/?p=29958 The CWAPC Women AstroPreneurs Collective project successfully completed the orientation program for their trainees which included a pre-competency survey with participants. The project aims to integrate first-generation female graduates into the workforce by equipping them with skills needed to produce astronomy products, and foster entrepreneurship among women. Ultimately, the project team aim to empower women [...]

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]]> Culture, Astronomy, and Community. A conversation with a Social Anthropologist https://astro4dev.org/culture-astronomy-and-community-a-conversation-with-a-social-anthropologist/ Fri, 11 Apr 2025 15:17:34 +0000 https://astro4dev.org/?p=29909 For the April edition of the Full Moon Mashup series, we had a deeply reflective session on Culture, Astronomy, and Community with Dr. Hanna Nieber, a social anthropologist. Dr Nieber is and Anthropologist from the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology and visited the OAD for 3 weeks. Dr. Nieber, whose ethnographic research explores how [...]

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