The XXXII IAU General Assembly (GA), held from 6-15 August 2024, was the first GA to take place on the African continent, marking a historic milestone in the global astronomy community. Driven by a bold vision, the event highlighted Africa’s growing scientific capacity and embodied the African spirit of Ubuntu, emphasising accessibility, impact, and sustainability. Now, two articles have been published in Nature Astronomy highlighting the meeting’s impact and legacy and positioning it as a model for accessible and affordable hybrid conferences.
One of the articles describes the vision behind the event, reflecting on its impact on astronomy in Africa, as well as the importance of Africa to astronomy. For the African astronomical community and the host organisation, the National Research Foundation (NRF), the GA presented an exceptional opportunity to showcase the incredible scientific capacity within the continent and to connect like never before with astronomers from across the world. For the IAU, it was an opportunity to bring global attention to Africa and to push forward its goal of being a truly international organisation, finally having had its flagship meeting take place on all six populated continents.
The XXXII IAU General Assembly was also the first GA to adopt a fully hybrid and open-access format. This opportunity to approach such a traditional and historical event from a new perspective encouraged a spirit of innovation enabled by emerging technologies. In a rapidly evolving world where gathering in person is increasingly challenging, hybrid meetings have become essential to keep communities connected.
However, achieving meaningful hybrid interaction during a conference is currently far from trivial, requiring the many elements of an effective in-person meeting as well as those of an equally effective online meeting, and thoughtful planning to blend the two. Yet it is worth the effort to overcome these obstacles, as hybrid conferences ensure improved accessibility, inclusivity, and sustainability via the inclusion of the online component. The second article in Nature Astronomy explains the hybrid design and innovation, lessons learned, and recommendations for future conference organisers.
The GA 2024 team are willing to share their experiences and guide organisers who want to create a lasting impact with their conference or symposium. Please get in touch with them for more information.
More information
The IAU is the international astronomical organisation that brings together more than 12 000 active professional astronomers from more than 100 countries worldwide. Its mission is to promote and safeguard astronomy in all its aspects, including research, communication, education and development, through international cooperation. The IAU also serves as the internationally recognised authority for assigning designations to celestial bodies and the surface features on them. Founded in 1919, the IAU is the world's largest professional body for astronomers.
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. As of 2023, the OAD has administered more than €1,000,000 in grant funds, awarded to over 200 projects across the world. Since its establishment, the OAD has negotiated the establishment of eleven regional offices around the world (based in Armenia, China, Colombia, Ethiopia, Jordan, Netherlands, Nigeria, Portugal, Thailand, USA 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).
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Contacts
Kevin Govender
Chair of the NOC XXXII IAU General Assembly
Email: kg@astro4dev.org
Charles Takalana
Chair of the NOC XXXII IAU General Assembly
Email:charles@astro4dev.org
Vanessa Moss
NOC XXXII IAU General Assembly
Email: Vanessa.Moss@csiro.au
Ramasamy Venugopal
NOC XXXII IAU General Assembly
Email:rv@astro4dev.org
Lina Canas
IAU Membership Coordinator
Email: lina.canas@iau.org / iaupressoffice@iau.org
Laura Hiscott
IAU Press Office Editor
Email: iaupressoffice@iau.org