Hello Cloudy Nights Community!
I’m Carys, an astronomy PhD student at the University of Kent, UK, and I want to introduce the incredible work of the International Astronomical Youth Camp (IAYC).
What is the IAYC?
The IAYC (iayc.org) has been running astronomy camps since 1969, and during that time has hosted over ~1700 individual young people from 88 different countries. The camp runs for three weeks in the summer for ~65 participants in a different country each year. During the day participants conduct semi-independent research, writing a report over the course of the camp, and at night we get the telescopes out. For some participants this is their first experience of dark skies or looking through a telescope. We know that the IAYC changes lives. There may even be former participants here!
Our Challenge
The IAYC is run by a dedicated team of volunteers, and is hosted by a registered non-profit. Our core tenets are to spread astronomical knowledge and to encourage international collaboration. We believe these should be accessible to everyone, not limited by high participation fees. For more information please visit iayc.org, or message me directly!
Clear skies,
Carys
