Our Shared Sky is a semi-monthly series focusing on stars, stories, and cultural perspectives of different countries and celebrations. We explore themes of light, food, music, and traditions that accompany the motion and changing of the seasons with different guest speakers who talk about their country, culture, and connections to the night sky.
Learn more about our efforts to broaden perspectives in Director Jean Creighton’s article in the September 2023 issue of The Planetarian: Engaging our Communities: Building Collaborations to Enrich and Diversify Planetarium Programs.
Upcoming Events
There are no upcoming events.
The UWM Planetarium is a proud member of the UWM Multicultural Network.
Past Speakers
February 2024: Under African Skies (Kenya)
Visitors were in for a special treat: Dr. Susan Murabana traveled all the way from Kenya to describe her experiences as CEO and co-founder of the Traveling Telescope, a social enterprise dedicated to promoting astronomy in Africa. Learn more about Susan.
February 2024: Lunar New Year
Dr. Pu Chen took audiences through an immersive timeline of the preparation for a traditional Lunar New Year celebration based on the cycle of the Moon. The show included themes of light, food, music, and traditions that accompany the changing of the seasons.
December 2023: Jewish Traditions
Rabbi Joshua Herman, executive director of Hillel Milwaukee, guided audiences through how and why astronomical phenomena influence Hanukkah, the Hebrew calendar, and Jewish observance. We explored themes of light, food, music, and traditions that accompany the motion and changing of the seasons.
September 2023: Dancing Under the Stars (Venezuela)
Arlensiu Garcia, Germán Novelli, and Maria Jimenez took audiences on a journey through their home country, Venezuela. Audiences enjoyed dancing, ate homemade empanadas, and learned about a unique lightning phenomenon in Venezuela.
February 2023: Under African Skies (Algeria)
Longtime Planetarium guest speaker and UWM engineering student Mohamed Maache treated audiences to tea and music from his home country, Algeria.
February 2023: Stars, Stories, & Rhythms of Africa
UWM Military & Veterans Resource Center Assistant Director James “Groovy” Cocroft shared stories and perspectives from the many years he spent traveling and seeing night skies around the world during his time in the US Navy.
April 2022: Asian Universe
UWM Hmong Diaspora Studies Lecturer Dr. Tong Yang sang traditional music for audiences at Asian Universe, an exploration of Asian cultural perspectives. Students from South Division High School performed traditional Indian, Karen, and Lao cultural dances.