This year has been like no other. The pandemic altered all of our lives. For many of us that meant \u201csheltering in place\u201d, working from our homes, often our ham shacks doubling as our new workplaces. For others, it meant working on the front lines providing health care or other vital services often at great personal risk. As difficult as these times are to stay apart, it is second nature for us, as radio amateurs, to communicate via \u201cvirtual\u201d means.<\/p>\n
For IARU<\/span> Region 2, 2020 was a year of many changes.<\/p>\n Workshops: We setup and hosted a series of Workshops on topics of interest across the region in Spanish and English. The response was phenomenal. One workshop attracted over 200 concurrent users and over 8000 viewed workshops on the IARU<\/span> R2<\/span> YouTube channel. More workshops are planned in the new year.<\/p>\n Youth outreach: After learning from some experimental programs, we established a Youth Liaison function to work with younger amateurs, an initiative that should start to be far more visible in 2021.<\/p>\n Band Planning: The Band Planning Committee conducted a major survey of the world above 50 MHz and found over 25000 active repeaters in the region. A joint Band Planning effort by all regions working with the WSJT<\/span> developers helped to develop a more consistent guidance for narrow digital modes.<\/p>\n Emergency Communications: After 9 years of service, our Emergency Coordinator Dr. Cesar Pio Santos HR2P<\/span> retired. Dr. Carlos Alberto Santamaria CO2JC<\/span> was appointed to carry on this vital role.<\/p>\n It\u2019s been a busy and productive year!<\/p>\n