1. COMMUNICATING ASTRONOMY WITH THE PUBLIC 2010 CONFERENCE (CAP2010) CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA 15-19 MARCH 2010 ASTRONOMERS WITHOUT BORDERS: WILDWIDE CONNECTIONS THROUGH ASTRONOMY BY PROSPERY C. SIMPEMBA AND MIKE SIMMONS www.astronomerswithoutborders.org pcs200800@gmail.compcs200800@gmail.com, msimm@ucla.edumsimm@ucla.edu

2. OUTLINE About Astronomers Without Borders Mission Structure Projects/activities Networking Conclusion Sunset over the Zambezi River, Zambia. AWB’s Time 4 work

3. ABOUT AWB Boundaries vanish when we look skyward. We all share the same sky. AWB is people meeting among the heavens. The heavens transcend political, ethnic and religious differences. Connecting and sharing knowledge and resources. Astronomy communication

4. MISSION To overcome earthly differences in culture, nationality or religion through the universal appeal of astronomy.

5. STRUCTURE Officers: President, Secretary Board of trustees Board of advisors Regional Coordinators National Coordinators Affiliate associations clubs

6. PROJECTS: IYA & BEYOND Take part in GAM: April 2010 Professional, amateur astronomers, Educators, COMMUNICATORS, all astronomy enthusiasts, SPoCs online interactive events during GAM sharing the excitement with others around the globe Saturn Watch :Saturn's rings are back! Is There Anybody Out There?Is There Anybody Out There? - 7th April 00.00 UT Beauty Without Borders - Saturn for All Bring back the Milkway, one star at a time Write Your Name in the Sky W r i t e Your Name in the sky

7. CALL FOR IAU ENDORSEMENT OF GAM CALL FOR AWB NATIONAL COORDINATORS

8. 100 Hours of Astronomy A 100-hour, round-the-clock, round-the-globe event, including -24 hours of live webcasts from research observatories -Public observing events, star parties, and other activities April 2-5, 2009 Chairs: Douglas Pierce-Price (ESO) and Mike Simmons (Astronomers without Borders) www.100hoursofastronomy.org

9. ASTRO BOOK DRIVE Astro Book Drives are currently running in, Mozambique, Rwanda, Ivory Coast and soon in Zambia and Tanzania. improving Astronomy Education in Developing Countries. IAU

10. - AstroBookDrive was launched in October 2009. - It was founded by Dr. John Clarke ( Boston University, USA ) and Thilina Heenatigala (Sri Lanka Astronomical Association) - Currently it's affiliated with EurAstro and AWB. AstroBookDrive projects so far: Mozambique Book Drive – Donations for MozAstro by Girl Scouts Troop in California. Rwanda Book Drive – Donations for Rwanda IYA2009 Organization by Australian IYA2009 Jamaica Book Drive – Donations for Astronomical Association of Jamaica by Royal Astronomical Society of Canada (Winnipeg ) Côte d’Ivoire Book Drive – Donations for Ivoir’Astro by EurAstro Organization Afghanistan Book Drive – Donations for Afghanistan Astronomical Association by StarPals Network Tanzania Book Drive – Donations for Tanzania by Greatert Portland Astronomical Society (Maine, USA) Zambia Book Drive: still looking for donations

11. Visit: http://astrodrive.lakdiva.net AWB Web Site Face book-like functionality with blogs and groups Sharing ideas and knowledge Video conferences Presentations Collaborative projects Platform for small or start- up programs with global project ideas

12. NETWORKING CENTRAL ORGANIZATION REGIONAL COORDINATORS AFFILIATE ORGANISATIONS AFRICA EUROPE ASIA NORTH AMERICA SOUTH AMERICA NATIONAL COORDINATORS

13. NETWORKING RESULTS Enhanced education on astronomy large sector of society GET TO appreciate ASTRONOMY PROMOTE Youth involvement IN THIS CARDINAL SCIENCE HELP DEVELOPING COUNTRIES TO ACCELERATE THEIR DEVELOPMENT OF ASTRONOMY PROMOTE FEMALE PARTICIPATION AND BRIDGE THE GENDER GAP (MDG)

14. Croatia UK Netherlands Morocco AUSTRALIA BOLIVIA ITALY SRI LANKA We produce a monthly newsletter

15. Iran: Solar eclipse 1999Star Party: Iran 2004Astronomy Seminar Zambia: 2009 Iraq/Iran

16. CONCLUSION AWB IS ABOUT Connecting people for the only one sky Sharing knowledge and resources Communicating astronomy with the public Building on the IYA momentum SABC STUDIO CAP2010 Interview (Photo credit: John Goldsmith, www.icrar.org)

17. REFERENCES 1. www.astronomerswithoutborders.orgwww.astronomerswithoutborders.org 2. http://astrodrive.lakdiva.nethttp://astrodrive.lakdiva.net