Regional Offices Activities: APR – Jun 2025

Andean

  • The Andean region have an updated website, please visit: https://andean.astro4dev.org
  • The Office has gathered initiatives from all of our office’s member countries and have defined three main focus areas: 1) Rural and Sustainable Astrotourism, 2) Community Inclusion and Empowerment, 3) Community Science Outreach.
  • The Diploma in Astronomy and Territorial Education for teachers from indigenous communities in southern Colombia has successfully concluded. This diploma was offered by the University of the Peoples, an indigenous university in Colombia. Further updates available on the Andean region website.
  • The Andean Office will be hosting the 5th Astronomy Workshop in the Andes. This event will bring together all members of our office in Pasto, Colombia, from September 22nd to 25th of this year. The workshop will be held in Spanish, but all are welcome to apply. More details at: https://andean.astro4dev.org/v-workshop-de-astronomia-en-los-andes/

Arab World and Arabic Language

  •  The 7th Middle East and Africa Regional IAU Meeting (MEARIM7) that will take place at the University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan, from November 11th to 13th, 2025. For more information, visit here.

East Africa

EA-ROAD Office

The EA-ROAD Director participated in the International Visitors Leadership Program (IVLP) in the United States, held under the auspices of the U.S. State Department. The program, themed “Economic Prosperity: Science and Technology Entrepreneurship,” took place from May 17 to June 7, 2025.

Regional Projects and Events

  • A workshop on “Optical Telescope Site Testing in Kenya” was organized in March. Further details are available here
  • A three-week observational techniques training was conducted at Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST) and Muni University in Uganda.
  • A public talk was delivered by Prof. Mirjana Pović at MUST and Muni University in Uganda, as well as at Jimma University in Ethiopia in May 2025.
  • A hybrid training on “Data in Astronomy” was conducted from May 14–16, 2025, in Ethiopia. The training was organized by SSGI, in collaboration with the IAA and EA-ROAD, and was facilitated by Prof. Mirjana Pović. Over 60 participants from 13 African countries attended the event.
  • Outreach activities were carried out in partnership with local colleagues in various regions, including Mbarara and Arua (Uganda), and Bedele and Addis Ababa (Ethiopia).
  • Ethiopia is sending a national team of secondary school students to the International Olympiad in Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA) in India August 11-21, 2025 for the first time. Preparatory training for the students is currently underway.

Europe

  • Successfully hosted the “Recovery Plan for Ukrainian Astronomy” meeting in Leiden (10–13 June), bringing together 25+ Ukrainian astronomers and European partners. Follow-up actions are underway.
  • Continuing ICM mobility coordination: recent visits to Leiden from Nigeria, Armenia, Colombia, and Ukraine; outgoing visit from Leiden to Ethiopia and Armenia.
  • Updating the E-ROAD website.

North America

  • Successfully launched the 2025 Women and Girls in Astronomy Program (WGAP) Call for Proposals, which closed on June 15th. Received a total of 33 applications and are currently in the evaluation phase. 10 will be selected with a grant of $2000 each for their project. 
  • The Zooniverse Train-the-Trainer Program (ZTTP) has been launched aimed at empowering researchers and educators. Participation from all IAU Regional Offices, as well as the Offices of Astronomy for Outreach (OAO) and Education (OAE). Interested participants can find the registration form on the NA ROAD website or social media platforms.
  • NA ROAD has a new cohort of dynamic Advisory Board members, who are actively engaged and contributing to NA ROAD’s mission. 
  • Currently planning an in-person NA ROAD meeting in Washington, D.C. later this year, bringing together leadership, partners, and stakeholders.

Portuguese Language

  • Event for World Portuguese Language Day on May 5th. To celebrate this date, and the 10 years of the PLOAD mission, we have released a video in Pecha Kucha format. Follow us on this journey through a decade of projects, achievements and dreams in astronomy for development. (YouTube and Facebook, in Portuguese)
  • Celebrating 10 years of PLOAD. Launch of the Mail Art call with the theme Astronomy for Development, in celebration of PLOAD’s 10th anniversary. (more info here, in Portuguese)
  • Azeitão Space Party on June 28. Participation in the event, in Azeitão, Portugal. The group coordinated a roundtable on astronomy for development and research in space sciences. Participation was hybrid, with members from various locations around the world. (more info here, in Portuguese)
  • Virtual science trail about the Eddington experience. From the E3GLOBAL project, the participants can travel along 6 stations, located between Roça Sundy and the city of Santo António (São Tomé and Príncipe), providing interaction with different dimensions associated with the 1919 eclipse. The trail is available on the PLOAD website (here).
  • XXXV National Meeting of Astronomy and Astrophysics – ENAA. Oral Communication Submission entitled “PLOAD – 10 years of Astronomy for Development in Portuguese” to the XXXV ENAA (https://indico.global/event/13951/Overview) to take place in Portugal from September 10 to 12, 2025.

Southern Africa

  • Astrolab workshop preparations for 2025 have reached advanced stage with the tutor training to run early July while the workshop is scheduled for August 2025 at Sol Plaatje University in South Africa.
  • Transient Array Radio Telescope (TART) workshop and installation were done in Zambia from 2 – 6 June 2025. The next installation will happen in August 2025 in Ghana.
  • The secretariat participated in the first round of review for OAD proposals. 
  • Zimbabwe Astronomical society will be hosting their inagural conference in September 2025 at National University of Science and Technology.

South East Asia

  • “Workshop Astronomi” A teacher training workshop in collaboration with Langitselatan and UPI at Bandung, Indonesia: ~80 participants. Followed by public talk ~150 participants.
  • More teacher training workshops planned in Nepal happening in July, and Vietnam in August
  • K-12 Astronomy Education Conference in Asia abstract submission closing the end of June.

West Africa

  • Centennial Celebration of the Planetarium. The WAROAD team celebrated the 100 years of the planetarium on the 7th of May, 2025, at the NASRDA Centre for Basic Space Science and Astronomy. The activities of the celebration were planetarium lectures, a show and a painting contest.
  • The WAROAD team celebrated the International Day of Light through publicity and outreach on the 16th of May, 2025. The outreach had in attendance teachers, students from Legit Senior Secondary School, Key Gold College Eburummiri, Christ Christian College Opi, and staff of NASRDA – Centre for Basic Space Science and Astronomy.
  • The WAROAD Team visited Community Secondary School, Odoro, Nsukka, on the 4th of June, 2025. The topics taught were on the solar system and the working principles of a telescope.
  • The team visited Suchest Academy Eburummiri, Nsukka, on the 5th of June, 2025. The educational topics taught hands-on were on the solar system, telescope types and space flight.
  • Excursion visit from Space Club, Hill Range Secondary School, Enugu State, to WAROAD regional office (NASRDA-CBSS).  The visit was on the 10th of June, 2025. The topics of engagement and hands-on were observable universes, observational astronomy, telescope types, and automated systems.
  • The WAROAD team visited Key Gold Secondary School Eburummiri, Nsukka, on the 12th of June, 2025.  The lectures of the outreach were on the solar system, telescopes, rockets and light pollution. The hands-on session of the outreach was on the working principles and usage of telescopes and the light pollution experiment.
  • The team, in collaboration with the Association Ivoirienne d’Astronomie, i.e., the Ivorian Astronomy Association (AIA), participated in the African Market for Space Solutions (MASS), which took place from May 6 to 8, 2025, in Abidjan. The team hosted a booth and presented educational tools on solar system models, telescopes, and astronomy. The team engaged with visitors, especially young people, about careers in astronomy, astrophysics and space science.