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Take a closer look at the first group of projects chosen to develop RAS outreach for the third century of its existence.

As time marches on, 2020 is coming ever closer and, with it, the bicentenary of the Royal Astronomical Society. The Society's ambitious plans for celebrating this anniversary include working with other organizations to develop new approaches to outreach for astronomy, solar-terrestrial physics, planetary science and solid Earth geophysics. The RAS wants to share the inspiration and applications of these sciences with people across more diverse communities and, in turn, bring new faces into the scientific community. 
Funding for the first six projects was approved in 2015. Some have an educational focus: the Prince's Trust are developing teaching materials to engage and encourage young people from disadvantaged urban backgrounds, while the Workers' Educational Association are using astronomy to inspire adults to learn skills useful for employability. Some use culture to develop curiousity about science. A project led by the National Space Centre are reimagining Holst's Planets Suite for planetarium presentations. The National Eisteddfodd and the Urdd National Eisteddfodd will include sceince themed activities, in the Welsh language. And Care4Carers will use the inspirational and fascinating aspects of astronomy to give carers a break from their primary roles and help them to develop links with others in similar positions. And the National Autistic Society is developing protocols to ensure that educational materials used for these and other projects will not exclude those with autism and related conditions.
You can read more about these projects in an article from A&G on the RAS website, in preparation for the next round of funding, which gets under way later in 2016.