Astrotourism is a form of sustainable tourism that leverages Southern Africa’s dark and clear skies—some of the best in the world—to drive rural economic development and community empowerment.
SAROAD’s involvement includes several key initiatives:
• Economic & Community Growth: SAROAD supports the creation of income-generating opportunities in rural areas through community observatories, and star-gazing events.
• Skill Development: The office is actively involved in training local youth to work as astro-guides and conducting educational sky tours to promote STEM awareness.
• Cultural & Environmental Preservation: SAROAD promotes dark-sky preservation policies and works to connect indigenous astronomical knowledge with modern science to preserve cultural heritage.
• Strategic Coordination: Astrotourism is managed as a “Flagship 1” initiative, integrating scientific outreach with heritage and environmental conservation across the region.
Supporting the development of community observatories, astro-lodges, and star-gazing events to create immediate income-generating opportunities in rural areas.
Training local youth as astro-guides to lead educational sky tours, which simultaneously promotes STEM awareness
Connecting indigenous astronomical knowledge with modern science and promoting dark-sky preservation policies to ensure environmental and heritage conservation
Integrating scientific outreach with heritage to foster community empowerment and sustainable economic growth.
Vision:
To achieve a well-established astronomy community in the region, contributing significantly to
the betterment of the region and the world at large.
Mission:
To help further the use of astronomy as a tool for development by mobilizing human and financial
resources necessary to realise its scientific, technological and cultural benefits to society.
Launching a New Frontier: The Pan-African Network for Planetary Science & Technology (PAP2SN)
From the five-day construction workshop to the official commissioning by the Vice Chancellor, discover how this initiative is preparing Zambian Astronomers to lead in the global Square Kilometre Array (SKA) era.
Prof James Lecture on “Astronomy and Astrophysics as key drivers of institutional and National development in Zambia”
