President’s year-end message

Dear IAU members,

As 2023 comes to a close, my thoughts are with our many colleagues around the world who are facing enormous challenges beyond their scientific endeavors.  Remember that we stand together under one sky. 

The IAU is a community of friends, and functions through the dedication of its members. I am grateful to all of you who have volunteered your time, talent, and energy to support the IAU Offices, Centers, Divisions, Commissions, and Working Groups. Our Executive Committee and Secretariat have done an outstanding job coordinating and overseeing the IAU efforts in fulfillment of our mission. All the participants at our symposia, workshops, and training programs helped make them a success and a model for other organizations.  We have revitalized our pre-pandemic activities and undertaken new endeavors, as highlighted on the IAU webpages.

We have much to look forward to in the coming year.  As you know, we are preparing for our first General Assembly in Africa, and are going to make it our first open-access meeting. We expect this to be an inspiration for the world. Please consider a contribution to enable African astronomers to attend by visiting the donation page https://lsstdiscoveryalliance.org/donate/iau-african-travel-fund/. The fund has been established by the LSST Discovery Alliance in collaboration with the African Astronomical Society and the National Organizing Committee of the General Assembly.

My very best wishes for 2024,

Debra Elmegreen

IAU President