MIKE SIMMONS  
 
MIKE SIMMONS has been involved in astronomy education and public outreach for more than 35 years. He has led and founded outreach organizations that share the work of astronomers and telescopic views of the sky with the public. He is a writer and photographer who has contributed to publications including Scientific American, Astronomy and Sky and Telescope, and he regularly gives presentations on astronomy. Recognizing astronomy as a universal interest that transcends cultural differences, Mike founded Astronomers Without Borders in 2006. He now serves as President of this effort to unite astronomy and space enthusiasts around the world through those common interests. Mike and Astronomers Without Borders have leadership roles in the International Year of Astronomy 2009, a UN-declared year that will bring astronomy to the public worldwide while conveying its importance to our common heritage and experiences. Minor Planet Simmons was named in his honor in 2003, in part for his “varied outreach activities in astronomy.”

Our ancestors have looked up at the night sky in wonder for thousands of years. In modern times we’ve learned that we share the same sky with the rest of the spherical world we live on, one people living under the same blanket of stars. The Overview Effect now conveys a complimentary and even more direct message from the perspective of space. The Overview Effect is an essential element in the attraction of our move off our planet, one that demonstrates with ease and clarity the fragility of our home and the need to work together to preserve it. Like the universal attraction to the starry sky that encircles us all, the Overview Effect is a message that resonates with people regardless of geographic, political or cultural identification. As humanity increasingly moves into space the Overview Institute will foster this vision of hope, engaging the majority of humanity that, while remaining Earthbound, continues to view the stars from below and travel into space in spirit.

-- Mike Simmons
 
 
     
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