Stanford will transition to a new university-wide online events calendar hosted on the Localist platform to enhance flexibility and easy user access beginning Feb. 1, the Stanford Report announced.

The transition comes 19 years after the launch of the University’s original online calendar system and is an attempt to create a more convenient user experience. Viewers can now curate their calendar by creating an account and following friends, specific departments, organizations and venues to receive updates about events they are attending or organizing. Users can also customize weekly email digests to fit their specific interests.

Stanford is joining peer institutions such as Cornell University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in using the Localist platform for centralized event-planning. The company aims to “improve student recruitment, engagement and retention” across a consistent layout, according to their website.

Individuals or groups who wish to post events on the platform must create an account using their SUNet ID. If approved for “publisher access” by their group or department, they can create events on the calendar and reach particular audiences through classification devices — “a powerful way to make sure their event gets seen by those who are most likely to be interested in it,” according to the Stanford Report. The event creation help page provides instructions and describes various features that event publishers can access to reach specific campus communities.

The former event calendar will remain accessible through the end of July. Questions about the new system and the online transition can be directed to administrators through an event calendar help Slack channel or through submission of a Service Now form.