The IAU Office of Astronomy for Development (OAD) has released its 2018 Call for Proposals. This call follows the same two stage process as last year, and aims to enhance both engagement with project leaders and the potential impact of projects. In addition, proposals are now welcome for projects targeting a wider audience than in previous calls.

Application to the 2018 call for proposals consists of two stages. Stage 1 of the proposal, which is due May 31st, is open to proposers from anywhere in the world. Proposers must submit a brief online application explaining the key aspects of their project. Stage 1 proposals, which will typically be only 2 pages long, will be scored by OAD reviewers based on predefined criteria.

After this process, selected proposals will be invited to submit a more comprehensive Stage 2 application. During Stage 2, teams will engage and work closely with the OAD, its Regional Offices where applicable, and other experts, who will provide guidance and feedback to improve applications. After this process of feedback and guidance, proposers are free to modify their Stage 2 application, which must be submitted by September 15th. The revised Stage 2 applications will be appraised by the reviewers, who will then recommend which projects to fund. After final approval from the OAD Steering Committee, applicants will be notified of the results in November 2018.

The ‘Getting Started’ section on the website provides background information on Astronomy for Development, project design, needs analysis, monitoring and evaluation, surveys, assessments, and other information. More information, including timelines and scoring criteria, is available on the OAD website.

More information

About the IAU and OAD

The International Astronomical Union (IAU) is an organisation that brings together about 12 000 astronomers from around the world. Founded in 1919, the IAU is the world’s largest professional body of astronomers. Its mission is to promote and safeguard the science of astronomy in all its aspects through international cooperation. The IAU also serves as the internationally recognised authority for assigning designations to celestial bodies and the surface features on them.

The IAU established the Office of Astronomy for Development (OAD) in partnership with the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa. The OAD was officially opened on 16 April 2011 at the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) in Cape Town, South Africa. It is tasked with the implementation of the IAU Strategic Plan including the establishment of Regional Offices. As of 2018 the OAD has administered a total of €628,025 in IAU grant funds, which was awarded to 122 projects across the world. Since its establishment the OAD has negotiated the establishment of ten regional offices around the world (based in Armenia, China, Colombia, Ethiopia, Jordan, Netherlands, Nigeria, Portugal, Thailand and Zambia) with two of these offices serving as a joint language centre (Chinese and Arabic), and one serving as a dedicated language centre (Portuguese).

Links

• IAU website
• OAD website
• 2018 Call for Proposals

Contacts

Kevin Govender
Director, IAU Office of Astronomy for Development (OAD)
Tel: +27 21 460 9350
Cell: +27 82 487 8466
Email: kg@astro4dev.org

Lars Lindberg Christensen
IAU Press Officer
Garching bei München, Germany
Tel: +49 89 320 06 761
Cell: +49 173 38 72 621
Email: lars@eso.org