Since its formation at the XXVI General Assembly in Prague in 2006, amazing progress has been made by Commission 55, all due to the work of the key activists and enthusiasts. The web-page for the Commission contains a wealth of information and is one of the key foundations and tools for the Commission. The web address is http://www.communicatingastronomy.org

The program of IAU scientific meetings is one of the most important means by which the IAU pursues its goal of promoting astronomy through international collaboration. A large fraction of the Union's budget is devoted to the support of these IAU scientific meetings. The IAU Executive Committee (EC) places great emphasis on maintaining high scientific standards, coverage of a balanced spectrum of topics, and an appropriately broad and international flavour for the program of IAU meetings. In that respect, the ICSU rules on non-discrimination in the access of qualified scientists from all parts of the world to any IAU meeting apply. The ICSU rules on non-discrimination are described in the document “Freedom, Responsibility and Universality of Science”, available on <http://www.icsu.org/Gestion/img/ICSU_DOC_DOWNLOAD/2205_DD_FILE_Freedom_Responsibility_Universality_of_Science_booklet.pdf.>