The International Geophysical Year, which took place from 1 July 1957 to 31 December 1958, featured the launch of Earth's first artificial satellites and inspired the Space Act that created NASA. Examples of upcoming IGY activities particularly relevant to the space weather community are new projects that coincide with the anniversary and are designed to address the Sun's influence on the terrestrial climate and the near-Earth space environment, as well as ongoing strategies for improving scientists' ability to retrieve data already being generated at hundreds of observatories around the world.