Please see below for more details and faq's. You will also find the details on what information the forms require.

Tip: when registering events, use the list below to formulate the answers in a separate document, then paste the info into the form. This will make the registration part quicker so you don't get timed out.

To submit your events on the website:

1. Register as a user (at the bottom of the left-hand column on the Home Page)
2. You will receive an activation email
3. Reply to it
4. Then you can go to the website and log in — only then do you see the Enter/Manage Event options

Then, to enter or edit your events:

1. Open the website
2. Go to the “Home” page (select “Home” from the menu on the left hand side — or follow this link to the form)
3. Log in (bottom of page on left hand side)
4. A new menu will appear on the left hand column of same page. Choose “Submit a New Event” under “Manage Events”

Please DO NOT FORGET to go back after the event to report your attendance (sign in, and use the same menu to go to ‘Manage Your IYA Events”, then “Report” on the event listing). The attendance numbers are VERY important for measuring the success of IYA, reporting, fundraising, and media relations.

There are two kinds of events:

1. Events that show on the website — these are the ones that are open to the public. The website is a powerful tool for advertising your events and attracting people either directly or by linking to your own website.
   Events are stored in a database. Visitors can search that database through a user-friendly Search for Events form, to find events based on geographical area and date.
2. Events that don’t show on the website — like private functions and school visits. These events will be identified by clicking the “Private” checkbox in the form.
   You need to register these events so that you can get access to free materials to hand out; it’s also VERY important to track all of the events that happen in 2009. This will help us measure our success and report to funders. Our ability to do so will help us attract the additional funders we sorely need!

How To Do It

Know who your designated person is. Every organization / group that wants to put on an IYA event needs to have one person who is responsible for posting the events, ordering materials, and reporting on the events after they happen.

To register yourself as a designated person: Choose a user name and password yourself. (Note: use your full name in the Name field — no short forms, nicknames, pseudonyms, etc)

The designated person will be able to enter event information at any time, by using the quick and easy form. Each event will be tied to the person who created the event by a UserID, and only that person will be able to edit that event information. Be sure to do it NOW — RIGHT AWAY — the sooner people know about your events, the more likely they are to come. Also, having an Events database that is bursting with events is a sure way to build excitement about IYA in the public’s eyes — and to inspire other groups to have events, too!

You will be required to fill in the following fields for each event:

Step 1 — What

Tell us what your event is about.

• Name/Title of event (Required)
• French Title (You may optionally provide a French name or title for your event)
• Category (Choose from preset list; Required)
• Event Description (short paragraph; extra info can go in here as well. You can add your organization name here if you like. Make good use of it!)
• Event Description in French (Optional)
• Language (from dropdown list: mostly useful for lectures, plays, etc.)
• Free event? (checkbox; If checked, no admission or other fees are charged)
• Kid Friendly? (checkbox; If checked, event is suitable for children.)
• Private event? (checkbox; If checked, event is private and will not be displayed in public searches)
• Event URL (not required, but strongly recommended! Please include the http:// prefix)

Step 2 — Where

Location of event. All fields must be completed.

• Venue (name of place, park, hall, etc. No address, please! If you need to give one, use the Event description field, or use above URL to link to your website where visitors can find all the necessary details.)
• City
• Province (from dropdown list; required)
• Region (from dropdown list; required)

Step 3 — When

Date and time of event. A start date must be provided; other fields are optional and could be irrelevant in your case.

• Start Date (Required; select from pop-up calendar.)
• Start Time (Optional; select from dropdown list; may be left blank)
• End Date (Optional; select from pop-up calendar)
• End Time (Optional; select from dropdown list; may be left blank)
• Continuous? (Checkbox; If checked, event runs continuously from start date/time to end date/time.)
• Times vary? (Checkbox; If checked, event recurs at variable times between start and end date.)

Step 4 — Contact

Contact Information. (For internal use and validation purposes only: this information will not be published. Failure to provide contact information may delay approval of your event entry.)

• Contact Name
• Contact Phone
• Contact Email
• Comment for site admins

All event information will be checked by a site administrator before becoming “live.” If a published event is edited, it could revert back to an unpublished state — this is to prevent false events or other typed of spam from making their way onto the site. We will do our best to ensure events become “live” quickly.

Each event you list will be assigned an individual ID number. You can look up ID numbers of all your events using the "Manage your IYA Events" link. The same function will also allow you to report on your events after they happen.

Event report

Reporting attendance is MANDATORY for 2 reasons:

• Keeping track of numbers will help us to measure the success of IYA and to report to funders. Our ability to do so accurately will attract funders.
• You will not be able to order new materials until you have reported on your registered events and shown you are putting them to good use.

How Will the Public Use It?

The website www.astronomy2009.ca will have a link to the events section where a form will allow visitors to search the database. The database will be searchable by province / territory (and region / district within the province / territory), with the option to specify a single date, or a range of dates. Events matching the search criteria will also have links to the websites of the groups that are organizing the events.

This process has been designed to be as quick and easy as possible. If you have any questions, please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .