Betterverse: Nonprofits in the Virtual World

Transcript of NPC Talks on Givecamp.org and Digital Democracy in the Islamic World

So for those that weren't able to make the Nonprofit Commons Meeting in Second Life last Friday, we had a really great session, with excellent speakers talking about a project to pair IT experts with local nonprofits and the relationship of Islam to the virtual world.

Our first speaker was Chris Koenig of Microsoft, who logged in to tell us about Givecamp.org, a project he has been spearheading that seeks to matchmake between local techies and local nonprofits that have technical needs.  There was a lot of interest from our audience in how we might translate his real world meetups into a virtual space, since many nonprofits are not necessarily near city centers where IT companies and experts are located.

Rita J. King of Dancing Ink Productions was our next speaker, the author of a ground-breaking report on Islam and the virtual world.  Her talk coincided with remarkable events in Egypt as Hosni Mubarak stepped down as president, following 18 days of protest that were documented and supported through social media and networking.  In solidarity, several avatars waved Egyptian flags during Rita's talk.

The two talks and the entire Nonprofit Commons meeting, as always, took place exclusively in text chat.  While this does make the meetings often run long, since most people type slower than they talk, it also makes it much easier for people to follow along even if English is not their first language or they have some form of disability. And it makes it super easy to share the transcript of the meeting with others who aren't able to attend.

After the jump, you can read the full transcript / text chat of the meeting....

Head to Egypt Sim to Celebrate Democracy and Justice in Egypt!

The Egypt sim, which just yesterday was the gathering point for lots of angry anti-Mubarak avatars, is now playing Arabic party music and hosting a huge spontaneous party as folks from all over the world converge there to celebrate Hosni Mubarak stepping down as president of Egypt, after decades of dictatorial rule.  In the few minutes I was there, I witnessed people talking in Arabic, English, French, Spanish and "woot" over both text chat and voice chat.  I counted about 80 avatars gathered at one point.  It was a joyous celebratory atmosphere that I imagine will last all through the day as more people hear about it.

Head over the Egypt sim in Second Life and party like an Egyptian!  Hurray for peaceful change, and prayers for more justice and democracy in Egypt and beyond.

By coincidence, the Nonprofit Commons invited Rita J. King to talk about the pro-democracy movement in Egypt, the role of virtual worlds in the Islamic World, and how these tools can be used for cross-cultural dialogue and understanding.  Rita gave us a lot of insight into how Muslims are using social media, networks and virtual worlds to connect with each other , express themselves, and organize.  We couldn't have a better example today.

Anti-Mubarak Demonstrations Continue in Second Life (video)

Here's a quick video of the 40-some demonstrators I found in the Egypt sim, most of whom appeared to be protesting against Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. This clip was taken soon after Mubarak was announcing that he was remaining in power until the elections in September. Mostly a civil, if upset, crowd of avatars, most of whom were also tuned into Al Jazeera or YouTube live at the same time as they were in Second Life. 

The situation in Egypt is still so fragile and incendiary right now.  At least in Second Life the worst that can happen is that someone griefs the event and crashes your browser, rather than someone getting their head bashed in or worse.

More pictures from the virtual demonstrations here.

 

Nonprofit Commons Meeting Tomorrow: Rita King on Egyptian Real & Virtual Protests + Coding for Charity!

We have a special Nonprofit Commons meeting lined up for this Friday, February 11 in Second Life.

We are pleased to welcome Rita J. King of Dancing Ink Productions to talk about the pro-democracy protests in Egypt and related events in Second Life. The topic could not be more timely, as we witness what may be the last days of the Mubarak regime, a diverse and unprecedented democracy movement in Egypt and the Arab world, and the active role that social networks and digital media has been playing in these events. Rita J. King is a journalist and co-author of the report "Understanding Islam in the Virtual World."  Read her recent article on Mashable on "Why Virtual Worlds Play an Important Part in the Arab World."

We will also be joined by Chris Koenig of Microsoft, who will talk about an innovative project to pair coders and tech experts with local nonprofits called GiveCamp.org. Since its founding in 2007,  GiveCamp has provided help and resources to over 150 charities, with a value of developer and designer time exceeding $1,000,000 in services! 

All that plus community open mic tomorrow starting at 8:30am PST at the Nonprofit Commons amphitheater. See you all there!

[NOTE: this meeting, and all NPC general meetings, will take place using text chat only, to facilitate accessibility for all and for archival purposes.]

Owner of Egypt Sim in Second Life Bans Avatars for "abusing" Mubarak

So I have been dropping by the Egypt sim in Second Life just to see what folks are talking about, connect with folks in the Egyptian daispora, and show solidarity with the pro-democracy folks in my own little way.  There generally have been about 20-30 avatars milling about every time I have visited, most of them carrying signs or demonstrating in some way.  The stream played what sounded like Egyptian pop music, which some folks were dancing to.

This morning, I rezzed in to see that my friend Draxtor had rezzed a shared media prim streaming in live news from Al Jazeera from Egypt.  I was chatting with folks and holding an Egyptian solidarity sign that someone just gave me when this message was posted to the public chat:

[09:42] ammroty Aedipo: I ask attention I'm the owner of the land\n To all the gentlemen to express their views as part of a respected without any abuse of the people of Egypt or to the President of the republic so far, Mr. Mohamed Hosni Mubarak, and any person beyond that will have a place in this land

Looks like this is an automated translation from the native Google translate app that is now integrated into SL chat. This sounds to me like the owner was threatening to ban anyone for speaking out against president Mubarak. According to his profile ammtory Aedipo is an Egyptian living in the United Arab Emirates

Just one minute later, I got a private message from an avatar that was just a moment ago standing in front of me that he got banned. Apparently he had tried to cover up a picture of Mubarak that another avatar had put out because the image offended him since Mubarak is a "murderer."  That's reportedly what got him banned by the owner.

That said, many of us in the sim continued to talk about how Mubarak was inciting violence, violating the law, and needed to step down.  As far as I know no one else was banned. That is until about 10:30am SLT when the entire sim was restarted, and all of us got booted from it.  But the sim owner ammroty Aedipo told me that Second Life restarted his sim, not him. 

He further cautioned that people should "respect" president Mubarak since he is still in office. So fair warning to protestors on Egypt sim to watch your language or you might get banned.

[Thanks to Hamlet on New World Notes for the link to the Egypt sim.]

 

Tour of Afghanistan Museum, Talk on Feminist Activism in Second Life Today at 1PM PST

Today there will be a tour and lecture at the Afghanistan Museum in Second Life starting at 1pm PST. I toured the museum a couple of months ago, and was quite impressed.

Amy Cross, founder of the Four Bridges Project and virtual worlds coordinator for Amnesty International, will speak about the "Afghanistan's Revolutionary Women." Then Gwen Penner, designer of the Afghanistan Museum, will lead a tour and talk about the possibilities for using virtual spaces for feminist activism.

Head to Minerva sim (teleport link) in Second Life to participate today at 1pm.

Update on "Gone Gitmo" Virtual Guantanamo Project: Possible New Host, More Funds Needed

As we reported in December, the creators of the "Gone Gitmo" virtual exhibit on the detention center in Guantanamo Bay are appealing for funds to keep their space going.  We're big fans of "Gone Gitmo" as an example of how virtual worlds can be used for educating the public about important public policy issues. Sadly, they don't have the funds to keep their space open, so they are appealing for help.

Project organizer Nonny de la Peña sends along good news that Gone Gitmo may have found more permanent hosting, due in some part to the attention the project got from this fundraising campaign.

 

They aren't there yet, so can still contribute $5 or more to the project just by completing a short survey.  Feel free to give more, if you think this project deserves to stay open.

For more information, go to: www.gonegitmo.blogspot.com or visit it yourself at this teleport link.  And read this cool interview with Nonny on the Neiman Storyboard blog.

Doctoral Students Create Civil Rights Movement Game and Simulation in Second Life

Allen Partridge sends out info about a neat project his doctoral students at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania completed on the Civil Rights Movement in the United States.  The simulation and game highlight four major events during the civil rights fight in the 50s and 60s: the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott, the 1963 March on Washington, the 1964 Mississippi Freedom School Movement, and the 1965 Voting Rights March from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama.

The game and simulation invites the visitor to walk around recreations of these historic places, complete with historic photos, videos, text commentary and quizzes along the way. You gain and lose points along the way as you make critical decisions related to the movement, i.e. whether to sit in the back of the bus or not.

You can visit the sim yourself for the next month or so by going to this teleport link.  More pics from my visit can be found here.

 

Help "Gone Gitmo" Virtual Exhibit on Guatanamo Bay Stay Open

Draxtor sends out word that the creators of the "Gone Gitmo" political exhibit in Second Life are appealing for funds to keep their space going.  We've long been fans of "Gone Gitmo" as a powerful example of how virtual worlds can be used for educating the public about important public policy issues. Having your avatar go through the experience of being a Guantanamo detainee is so much more affecting than virtually any other media.

Sadly, they don't have the funds to keep their space open, so they are appealing for help. Here's what the creators Nonny de la Peña and Peggy Weil say:

The cost of maintaining a virtual environment is real. We have self-supported GONE GITMO since 2008 and are looking to KEEP GITMO OPEN with your help. We are hoping to fund the maintenance fee for 2011 as well as a series of online events, inviting speakers who have visited Guantánamo Prison to come to GONE GITMO as avatars to speak of their experience.

Even though President Barack Obama, five ex-secretaries of state, the current secretary of state, the former Secretary General of the U.N. and the current Secretary General of the U.N. have each called to CLOSE the real Guantánamo Bay Prison... we need your help to keep GONE GITMO OPEN!

The best part is, you can contribute $5 to the project just by completing a short survey.  Feel free to give more, if you think this project deserves to stay open.

For more information, go to: www.gonegitmo.blogspot.com or visit it yourself at this teleport link. 

16 Days of Action Against Gender Violence Continues in Second Life This Week

Sharon Collingwood reminds folks that this week the "16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence" continues to be commemorated around the world and in the virtual world this week.

The video above is from the AAUW International Women's Music Festival in Second Life, which was attended by over 200 people. Among the exciting events this week are a reading of poetry against women's violence on Tuesday, an exhibit of sculpture and photography by Josina Burgess on Wednesday, and a light show and a performance by "U2inSL" on Friday.

More highlights from the 16 Days of Activism this week after the jump...