<html><head><style type='text/css'>p { margin: 0; }</style></head><body><div style='font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 12pt; color: #000000'>Universe Awareness outreach programme hosted locally at South African
Astronomical Observatory honoured with prestigious international award<br>------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<br><br>The
Universe Awareness (UNAWE) programme, with which the S.A. Astronomical
Observatory (SAAO) is intimately involved, has been honoured with the
Science Prize for Online Resources in Education (SPORE) award. Science
Magazine introduced the SPORE award as a means to showcase the best
educational resources that are available on the Internet and to bring
them to a wider audience.<br><br>The SAAO's involvement in the UNAWE
programme has been very strong, and recently received EU funding to
ensure the continuation of the programme locally, with the SAAO
responsible for hosting the local manager for UNAWE. "We are delighted
to hear about SPORE award. UNAWE focuses on young disadvantaged
children and with its activities we are succeeding in awakening their
curiosity, stimulating their interest in science and also encouraging
them to appreciate the multicultural origins of astronomy,
particularly, Africa's contribution to science", said Sivuyile Manxoyi,
manager of the SALT Collateral Benefits Programme at SAAO.<br><br>The prize goes to Dr.
Carolina Ödman-Govender the developer of the UNAWE programme. Dr.
Ödman-Govender has worked in science for development for many years,
before joining the South African Astronomical Observatory and the
African Institute for Mathematical Science (AIMS) in 2010. She is now
holding the position of director of academic development of the AIMS –
Next Einstein Initiative (AIMS – NEI). “One of the key features of UNAWE
is its openness, it is a form of crowd-sourced education. A vast
network of educators contribute educational materials and resources,
which are uploaded to the UNAWE website. They can then be distributed,
adapted and translated for use in other countries”, says Carolina who is
passionate about openness and availability of education.<br><br>UNAWE
is an international programme that uses the beauty and grandeur of the
Universe to inspire children aged 4-10 years, particularly those from an
underprivileged background. The programme uses astronomy to cultivate a
sense of perspective, foster a global citizenship and stimulate
interest in science at a crucial age in a child’s development. The UNAWE
website hosts a vast repository of educational materials that are
produced by the programme’s network of almost 500 educators and
astronomers in 40 countries – one of the biggest international networks
of science educators. UNAWE is a programme endorsed by the International
Astronomical Union (IAU).<br><br>For UNAWE press release see: www.unawe.org/press/UNAWE1103/<br>For IAU press release see: www.iau.org/public_press/news/detail/iau1104/<br>For
AIMS-NEI press release see:
http://www.nexteinstein.org/aims-nei-director-of-academic-development-awarded-prestigious-science-education-prize-by-science-magazine<br><br><br>Contact Information<br><br>SAAO<br><br>Dr. Enrico Olivier<br>SAAO, PO Box 9, Observatory, 7935, South Africa<br>Tel: +27 21 447 0025<br>olivier@saao.ac.za<br><br><br>AIMS<br><br>Ms. Linda Camara<br>African Institute for Mathematical Sciences<br>6 Melrose Rd, Muizenberg, 7945, South Africa<br>Tel: + 27 21 787 9263<br>Fax: + 27 21 787 9321<br>linda@aims.ac.za<br><br><br><br>AIMS - NEI<br><br>Ms. Vicky Mbalo<br>AIMS – NEI Secretariat<br>5 Hillcrest road, Muizenberg, 7945, South Africa<br>Tel: +27 21 709 0617<br>vickyn@nexteinstein.org<br><br><div><span name="x"></span>-- <br>Regards<br><br>Thembela Mantungwa<br>S.A. Astronomical Observatory<br>Tel: 021 460 9319<br>Fax: 086 612 7502<br>Email: tm@saao.ac.za<br>Website: www.saao.ac.za / www.salt.ac.za<br><span name="x"></span><br></div><br></div></body></html>