During the second half of the nineteenth century Australian amateur and professional astronomers worked together in actively promoting astronomy among the general public. This collaboration was a product of the cordial amateur-professional relations that permeated pre-astrophysics Australian astronomy.

Astronomy and astrophysics subjects at the University of Wollongong are seen as a vehicle for emphasising and clarifying concepts in the physics degree course. They also serve to introduce both undergraduate and postgraduate students to skills in computing and instrumentation not encountered in traditional subjects.

This paper summarises the function of the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics in India.

The paper briefly describes a new publication in Japan, the bulletin ‘Teaching of Astronomy in the Asian-Pacific Region’. The author is the Chairman of the Working Committee of Teaching of Astronomy in the Asian-Pacific region of the IAU.

This paper examines the importance of astronomy education for a rural society in a third world country. Some conclusions are drawn about methods of introducing astronomy to school students and, through them, the entire village. The conclusions are based on the author’s direct experience in addressing high school students in several rural towns in India.