NAMES 2018 Conference

From: 24 October 2018 To: 26 October 2018

About NAMES Network
The North Africa and Middle East Science Center’s Network (NAMES) was launched on 30 January 2006 at the Library of Alexandria. The goal of NAMES is the popularization of science throughout the region by enhancing public understanding and involvement in science and scientific culture among an increasingly diverse audience.
The purpose of creating NAMES is to foster cooperation between existing science centers and museums in North Africa and the Middle East with the aim of benefiting from all available resources and experiences within the region to further enhance the role of all member establishments. The Network also aims to help establish new science centers and museums in all countries of the region.
The purpose and goal of NAMES are to be achieved through excellence and innovation in informal education and by offering hands-on activities where the audience can indulge in participatory learning.

NAMES 2018 Conference
NAMES 2018 will take place on 24–26 October 2018 at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA), Egypt. The Conference is hosted by one of NAMES founding members, the BA Planetarium Science Center (PSC), in celebration of the 10th Anniversary of NAMES 1st Conference and General Assembly Meeting (GAM) also hosted by the PSC.
“360°: See It All!” is the theme of NAMES 2018. It is a call to look at work in science centers and museums from all angles, functions, and contexts, to be contemporary to where the world is now while we create, connect, and commit. Science communication professionals are expected to set an example of scientific, critical, and sustainable thinking.

Who Should Attend NAMES 2018?
The Conference targets science educators; such as animators, teachers, etc.

Why Should You Attend NAMES 2018?
The Conference covers the following themes:
• Content – Creating Shared Experiences
• Connections – Creating links
• Commitment – Creating your sustainability

How much is the Registration Fees?
*The hereunder mentioned rates are per person.

Category	Standard Rate (1 Jun – 10 Oct)	Onsite Rate
Individuals	EGP 700.-	EGP 900.-
Groups (4 persons or more)	EGP 630.-	EGP 810.-

What does the Registration Fees Cover?
• Certificate of Participation
• Conference Bag and Nametag
• Conference Documents
• Admission to opening and closing ceremonies
• Admission to all Conference sessions
• Admission to the Exhibition Fair
• All lunches and coffee breaks as per the conference program
• Gala Dinner
• Nocturne
• One free tour of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina

How to Register?
Step 1  Fill-out the registration form on the following link and submit it online:
http://www.namesnetwork.org/NAMES2018/Registration/RegistrationForm.aspx
Step 2  Pay the registration fees through one of the following options:
1. Online Payment via the link you will receive once your registration is submitted and verified;
2. At the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Cashier Office.


For more information, please contact us on:
Bibliotheca Alexandrina, P.O. Box 138, Chatby 21526, Alexandria, EGYPT
Phone: +(203) 4839999; Ext.: 2350, 2351, 2355
Email: psc@bibalex.org
Website: www.namesnetwork.org/names2018

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NAMES 2nd General Assembly Meeting – NAMES 2010

From: 16 October 2010 To: 17 October 2010

The four-year old North Africa and Middle East Science centers network (NAMES) held its Second General Assembly Meeting, NAMES 2010, on 16 17 October 2010. The hugely successful event was hosted by The Scientific Center of Kuwait (TSCK), under the leadership of NAMES President, Mr. Mijbil Almutawa.

The success of the conference solidified the status of the Network on the international arena with the participation of 150 delegates representing more than 22 countries, in addition to words of recognition from Ecsite, the European network of science centers and museums, and ASTC, the Association of Science-Technology Centers. Mike Bruton, Past-President of SAASTEC, The Southern African Association of Science and Technology Centers, introduced a video about the 6th Science Centers World Congress (6SCWC), which will take place in Cape Town, South Africa, on 4-8 September 2011, under the overarching theme “Science Across Cultures”. NAMES, represented by Mijbil Almutawa in the International Program Committee, is the co-host of 6SCWC [www.6scwc.org].

The overarching theme of NAMES 2010 was “Science for Knowledge and Prosperity” with three sub-themes; New Technologies, Sustainable Development and Life Sciences. The conference featured Keynote Speeches by eminent speakers: Mostafa Elsayed, Julius Brown Chair, Regents Professor and Director of Laser Dynamics Laboratory, Georgia Institute of Technology, USA; Hoda Baraka, First Deputy to the Egyptian Minister of Communications and Information Technology, EGYPT; Fatma Al-Awadhi, Research Directorate, The Kuwait Foundation for The Advancement of Sciences, KUWAIT; and Kazem Behbehani, Director General, Dasman Diabetes Institute, KUWAIT

Parallel sessions covered “Featuring Nanotechnology in Science Centers”, “Science Center Management for Sustainable Development”, “Involvement of Academia in Science Centers”, “Empowerment of Youth and Volunteering in Science Centers”, as well as “ICT and Multimedia Trends in Science Centers” and “Interactivity in Science Centers”.
NAMES 2010 also featured an Exhibition Fair that included international exhibitors such as: The American Museum of Natural History, The Field Museum and the Liberty Science Center from the USA, as well as Hüttinger from Germany, Bruns from Netherlands, and MTE Studios from the United Arab Emirates.

For more information about names, please click here

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The 20th International Planetarium Society Conference - IPS2010

From: 26 June 2010 To: 30 June 2010

The Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA) has had the honor of hosting the 20th International Planetarium Society Conference (IPS2010), which took place for the first time in Africa and the Middle East at the BA Conference Center in Alexandria, Egypt, in the period 26-30 June 2010.

IPS2010 was organized by the BA Planetarium Science Center (PSC), under the title “Back to Alexandria, the Cradle of Astronomy” in acknowledgement of the important role the ancient Library of Alexandria played in enriching all fields of science, with special emphasis on astronomy. The overarching theme of IPS2010, “The History of Astronomy”, resonates with the conference’s location, Egypt, a country that has significantly contributed to the human heritage, since the Pharaonic civilization and for decades to follow.

The new Library of Alexandria aspires to be a focal point where scholars from all over the world gather to discuss, research and develop new technologies. Using state-of-the-art technology, the BA seeks collaboration with other organizations, institutions and planetariums around the world for the benefit of the national, regional and international communities.

For more informationm please click here

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17th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Astronomy in Society – SEAC’2009

From: 25 October 2009 To: 31 October 2009

Astronomy is the most ancient science mankind utilized and developed over the years. In an attempt to revive the vital role of astronomy in our 21st century high technology culture, the European Society for Astronomy in Culture (SEAC) held its 17th annual meeting on 25–31 October 2009 at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA), Alexandria, Egypt.

The event was part of the International Year of Astronomy (IYA 2009), which was initiated by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) in partnership with the UNESCO and numerous associate organizations to help citizens of the world rediscover their place in the Universe through astronomy and basic sciences. SEAC 2009 was to demonstrate the chronological evolution of astronomy throughout history and the rise and fall of different civilizations.

The BA was chosen to host SEAC’2009 because it is located on the Mediterranean coast at the meeting point of Eastern and Western civilization, where astronomy was studied and utilized in people’s daily life activities since the dawn of civilizations.

For more information, please click here

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NAMES 1st General Assembly Meeting – NAMES 2008

From: 02 November 2008 To: 03 November 2008

NAMES first General Assembly Meeting took place on 2-3 November 2008. The theme of the conference is “The Role of Science Centers in Establishing Knowledge-Based Societies in the Region“. One of the keynote speakers was Dr. Ismail Serageldin, Director of Bibliotheca Alexandrina; he delivered a talk about “Islamic Civilization and Science”. Sub-themes that were tackled in parallel sessions and workshops will be “Networking and Advocacy” and “Effective Non-Traditional Methods of Science Communication”.

The target of the North Africa and Middle East Science centers network (NAMES) is to provide professional development for the science center field in the North Africa and Middle East region. NAMES aims to promote best practices, to support effective communication and to strengthen the position of science centers within the community at large. NAMES aspires to encourage excellence and innovation in informal science learning by serving and linking its members in the Middle East and North Africa Region and advancing their common goals, as well as linking them to the global community of science centers.
 
For more information, please click here

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Women in Science – WIS 2007

From: 23 October 2007 To: 24 October 2007

"The thing women have to learn is that nobody gives you power; you just take it." Plato (427-347 BCE)

In the world of globalization, more emphasis is being put on enhancing Science and Technology capacity in the developing nations. A goal that  could only be achieved through the mobilization of all human resources in these nations. The recognition of the role of women as key players is crucial towards the success of this endeavor.

To highlight the importance of the role of women, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina celebrated its fifth anniversary by organizing the “Women in Science” conference that took place 23-24 October 2007. The Library invited eminent persons and practicing scientists from all over the world to discuss various pertinent and pressing issues, namely

• Education of Women (biases, segregated schooling, streaming into Arts and Sciences, and disciplinary biases);

• Teaching and Research (universities, and research in commercial labs);

• Women in Executive and Managerial Positions (public/private sector, education, NGOs, foundations, academies, commercials, and think tanks);

• Social Context (balancing home and career, remuneration and promotion, career counseling and mentoring, and societal pressures); and

• Applications of Science to benefit Women (women in rural areas, women in urban areas, environment, employment and empowerment).

For more information, please click here

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World Space Environment Forum – WSEF 2007

From: 20 October 2007 To: 25 October 2007

The World Space Environment Forum 2007 took place 20-25 October 2007 at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Conference Center (BACC).

WSEF 2007 was organized, jointly, by the BA Planetarium Science Center (PSC) and the World Institute for Space Environment Research (WISER) of the National Institute for Space Research in Brazil. It aimed to review the state of space environment research, and to identify the key problems in Sun-Earth relation to be addressed by the international solar-terrestrial science community in the coming years. WSEF 2007 provided a forum for elaborating international collaboration programs on research and training on the earth-ocean-space environment.

WSEF 2007 comprised two events:

1) The first four days, 20-23 October 2007, were dedicated to scientific discussions within the invited participants of the "Scientific Meeting";

2) The last two days, 24-25 October 2007, constituted a number of public lectures to present an overview of space activities worldwide, in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of space exploration, within a "Public Forum.

For more information, please click here

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Total Solar Eclipse – TSE 2006

From: 22 March 2006 To: 06 April 2006

A multinational festivity, the “Total Solar Eclipse” targeted several age groups through four different events:

1) The two-week, invitation-only, “Frontiers of Astronomy” school/workshop targeted a selected group of international, regional and local under and post graduate students. Those participants were given a rare chance of mingling with and benefiting from an exceptionally elite group of scientists who are at the top of their fields of study from the Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics (CITA), Max-Planck-Institute for Astrophysics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Calthec, Paris Observatory, University of California, Cambridge, Oxford, Princeton, Stanford and JILA.

2) The two-day public “Culture and Astronomy” series of lectures targeted promising preparatory and secondary school students as well as the interested unspecialized public in general. The twelve lectures were delivered by a group of highly acclaimed astronomers from COSPAR, the Paris Institute for Astrophysics (IAP), the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research, Paris Observatory, Max-Planck-Institute for Astrophysics, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Boston College, St. Andrews University, the Kwasan and Hida Observatory, the Virtual Laboratory for Archaeometry and Ain Shams University.

The other two events of the "Total Solar Eclipse 2006" took place simultaneously on 29 March 2006. The PSC staff was divided to cover all possible aspects of the event that will not take place in Egypt again for another twenty-one years:

3) Part of the PSC staff traveled with the speakers from the first two events and the participants of the school/workshop on the 28th of March to Alsaloum where a camp had been arranged for the group to spend the night and be able to follow all the steps of Totality in the morning of the 29th. The trip was a unique opportunity for the staff, the speakers and the participants to bond and further enhance the newly established connections.

4) The other part of the PSC staff stayed in Alexandria where an observation of the partial eclipse was organized for the public in the plaza of the BA. The one-day event also included a lecture by one of the PSC resident astronomers, a videoconference with NASA and coverage of the observation of Totality from Turkey.

For more information, please click here

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Knowledge Society Symposium – KSS 2006

From: 01 February 2006 To: 02 February 2006

In February 2005, the American University in Cairo and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina inaugurated the First Knowledge Society Symposium. The event took place at the American University in Cairo and brought together leaders from universities, corporations, research institutions, foundations and governments in the Arab region in substantive discussions concerning the issues, challenges and strategies of promoting knowledge-based development in the Arab World. The First Knowledge Society Symposium marked the start of an on-going long-term process of networking, exchange of research ideas, practical applications and best practices.

Consequently, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina is hosting the Second Knowledge Society Symposium, a two-day closed symposium taking place 1- 2 February 2006, this second symposium will focus more in depth on the Challenges associated with centers of excellence in teaching and research and how they can nurture innovation and creativity. In addition, it will address the problems of capacity -building for sciences and technology which represent a big challenge all over the world, and more specifically in the Arab World. This symposium aims to galvanize collaborative efforts to tackle the significant education tasks and challenges facing the region today.

 For more information, please click here

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Einestin Symposium 2005

From: 04 June 2005 To: 06 June 2005

If we try to make a label to every year, 1905 will be labeled Einstein's Annus Mirabilis - "the miracle year". In 1905, Einstein published his 5 major papers on the special theory of relativity, Brownian motion and the quantum theory. It was for the quantum theory that he was awarded the 1921 Noble Prize.

To honor the centennial of 1905, the Library of Alexandria is organizing a symposium in June 2005, the UNESCO declared "World Year of Physics (WYP)".

WYP is a worldwide celebration of physics and its importance in our everyday life. Physics, not only plays an important role in the development of science and technology, but it also has a tremendous impact on our society. WYP aims to raise the worldwide awareness of physics and physical sciences. This year gives us the opportunity to celebrate Einstein, his great ideas, his influence, and how he changed our view of ourselves, our world and the universe at large.

The Celebration at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina will take place from 4-6 June 2005, and the presence of Nobel Laureates and world authorities.

There will have three main events:
• Public forum
• Science and Society
• Einstein - the man and the legacy;
• Scientific Symposium (closed sessions)
• An exhibition.

The official language of the symposium is English with simultaneous translation to Arabic.

All attendance are joining us in the Library to celebrate the achievements of one of the key figures in the last century-Albert Einstein.