Associates / ICARDS

Public outreach with IUCAA Associates / ICARDS

IUCAA conducts a considerable amount of national level outreach with various partners. It also provides occasional support for active public outreach programmes for Astronomy / Science Education being planned or conducted by IUCAA Associates / ICARDS at their institutes or organised with their direct involvement.

* for any difficulty in accessing these links, contact Mr. Samir Dhurde
 
The support request can be for :  
  1. Public Lectures and Talks:

    • Researchers from IUCAA can be invited for such outreach events providing opportunities for the public to learn about the latest discoveries, trends, and developments in astronomy and astrophysics.
  2. Outreach associated with a planned event:

    • IUCAA SciPOP team can help plan and conduct public outreach relevant to workshops, meetings, conferences of a more academic nature.
  3. Outreach Workshops:

    • IUCAA Outreach team can help conduct workshops, training programs, and hands-on sessions
    • End target audience should be students (up to high school) and / or amateur astronomers (clubs etc).
    • These can have themes like DIY Telescope making, Basic Astronomy observation techniques, and even STEM teaching in a fun way.
  4. Teacher Training Initiatives:

    • IUCAA SciPOP offers specialized training programs and resources for teachers to enhance their knowledge and teaching skills in astronomy and related sciences.
    • These initiatives aim to empower educators to integrate astronomy into their curricula and inspire students to explore the universe.
  5. Public Observing Sessions:

    • IUCAA can help plan and conduct (for nearby places) large scale public observing events to see celestial objects and phenomena through telescopes and binoculars.
  6. Educational Materials and Resources:

    • IUCAA develops and distributes educational materials, resources, and multimedia content to schools, libraries, and educational institutions.
    • These materials include textbooks, videos, posters, and interactive tools designed to engage learners of all ages and backgrounds.
  7. Digital and Online Engagement:

    • IUCAA utilizes digital platforms, social media, and online resources to engage audiences and disseminate information about astronomy and astrophysics.
    • The center hosts webinars, virtual tours, and online courses to reach a global audience and facilitate remote learning and participation.

Rules and Guidelines

(Please read these carefully before proceeding to fill the application in detail)
  1. At least one permanent IUCAA personnel, preferably from the outreach department (contact details), should be part of the planning from initial phase, implementation and certification.
  2. Target of Outreach:
    Events will have the end target audience limited to –

     

    • Secondary and high school (up to 12 std) age Children, Amateur Astronomers or General Public.
    • School teachers or other persons (if any), who will receive training and then cater to school age children may also be included under this.
  3. The proposers should carefully evaluate if the duration of the program justifies the travel, effort, and the associated costs. Outreach event should not be minor or too general like a college fest etc., although it may have a component for the public eg. a large scale sky show, public talk etc. For such association, please email us directly at scipop@gmail.com
  4. Budget: (IUCAA Association is a must for seeking monetary support)
    • Proposals with reasonable support from the local host in the form of partial funding support, accommodation, food, and/or hall charges will be viewed favorably.
    • Symbolic excesses such as expensive mementos and unnecessary program paraphernalia should be avoided.
    • Wherever possible, one set of basic material needed for workshop etc. could be carried by IUCAA personnel if they are involved in conducting the event.
    • IUCAA will not provide support for purchases or hiring of expensive material such as telescopes, planetariums etc. although low-cost raw material / kits may be considered. These may be listed in detail. The support should also not be used for commercial hiring of external agencies / event managers.
    • If the above are necessary for conducting of the event, they should be procured by the host via local funding or a reasonable registration fee could be used to cover the cost.
    • Honourarium and TA for experienced resource persons must be granted as per government norms.
    • Wherever possible, host should try to minimise the expenditure related to local hospitality of participants and cover it in-house.
    • Travel of IUCAA resource persons (excluding local travel) to the venue will be borne by IUCAA directly and need not be mentioned in the budget.
    • If approved, the report of the event along with the photographs must be submitted before submitting the final Utilization Certificate (UC) (within one month after the event).

Note: For those seeking monetary support, a rough budget template is available in this document. It is to be filled with as much detail as possible and uploaded within the support application form, preferably as a doc, pdf or spreadsheet.