Author: Nonprofit Commons

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Vote for the Nonprofit Commons crew with Second Life Homelessness Mash-up, Transitions project for Mash-up challenge


Today, in the Nonprofit Commons weekly meeting, a group of Nonprofit Commons members (entire project team was not at meeting, but it is: In Kenzo, Ozma Malibu, Rhiannon Chatnoir, Kali Idziak, Amulius Lioncourt and others) discussed their Mash-up Challenge project. I am voting for this project, and I am endorsing them.

The Transition project’s mission is to combat homelessness and to help those in transition envision a real life situation where they will have a home. To that end, the homeless participants will build their virtual homes, the 40 virtual world participants will be able to tell us whether they feel closer to being able to design a real-life reality that includes a home. The mash-up will work with Second Life and other web tools to create a homelessness resource portal for finding local service providers quickly, a widget tool flexible enough to import and embed across webspaces and virtual worlds.

Their findings will help determine whether virtual worlds like Second Life are an appropriate tool for people to use in redesigning their lives. Starting from the Nonprofit Commons in Second Life, the Transitions team will be mentoring new residents in lifeskills and building new homes along through the website A Place for Dreams, , where new opportunities will emerge. They plan to offer full life-skills trainings, business tools and microloans, one-click services.

Here is the chat transcript from the meeting, where they describe their project and their experience with the Mash-up Challenge. They participated in the Google Hackathon last week, and had a very productive learning experience (there are 8 members of the Nonprofit Commons in Second Life on the team, and it is led by Evonne Heyning and Sandy Andrews, both Nonprofit Commons members).

Below, is the chat transcript from their presentation about their very cool mash-up:

[8:59] Ozma Malibu: ok, the transitions project will provide resources to displaced/homeless/in transition folk, on several levels
[8:59] Ozma Malibu: one of which is in SL
[8:59] Ozma Malibu: AND last Friday, Amulius and I attended the Google hackathon and got so much help!
[8:59] Manifold Destiny: can you explain what that means? homeless in SL?
[8:59] In Kenzo: http://www.netsquared.org/2008/conference/projects/transitions is the document we have started to help the community get onboard with this project
[9:00] In Kenzo: Looking at RL homelessness through an SL lens, seeing if we can make a positive impact thru SL and other web tools created especially for those “in transition”
[9:00] You: google hacjkathon was a techsoup/netsquared event
[9:00] In Kenzo: We have applied for the mashup challenge with Netsquared
[9:01] Ozma Malibu: Volunteer engineers from Google were at the hackathon along with Netsquared, and after being guided to think things out we got to work with each attending engineer to see how their expertise would fit with our goals
[9:01] In Kenzo: To build web tools that will provide easy one-two click searches for those who need basic living care
[9:01] In Kenzo: and a portal that will encapsulate our collective work, as each of the group leaders here has contributed a vital piece
[9:02] In Kenzo: Community VoiceMail, Bridges, Floaters all serve this community already, we are consolidating their services and other data from around the web to make it easier for people to find what they need and move forward
[9:02] In Kenzo: At this point, we would love you to visit the website at Netsquared and give us your vote, make comments and ask questions there
[9:02] In Kenzo: http://www.netsquared.org/2008/conference/projects/transitions
[9:02] Carmen Gray: /great idea Kenzo 🙂
[9:03] In Kenzo: We need lots of public support, and others here re welcome to join us if you see a programmatic link with your nonprofit work
[9:03] Jani Myriam: That *so* rocks!
[9:03] In Kenzo: we will be doing an SL pilot soon!
[9:04] Buffy Beale: Yes please everyone take a minute and vote for us
[9:04] In Kenzo: we will rock the vote today, come and help us gain a little momentum for this work. ozma and the team here has put a lot forward to build an SL pilot project, helping those in transition build new lives here
[9:05] You: and help these avatars win the big prize for teh net squared contest
[9:05] In Kenzo: We are REALLY EXCITED about this opportunity, and opening it up for people to start new businesses and lives through this imagination space….we will provide mentionship and grounding, tools and resources together and we invite you to join us
[9:05] In Kenzo: for the web space, for SL, for this community and most of all for those looking for a new life, we are building aplaceofdreams.org and will gather these elements on the web in the coming months. thanks for your help.
9:06] In Kenzo: http://www.netsquared.org/2008/conference/projects/transitions

Written by: Glitteractica_Cookie

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SAVE THE DATE: ICC Prosecutor, Kofi Annan to Address Global Kids’ International Justice Center on March 20

virtual ICC
Global Kids is excited and honored to announce that on Thursday, March 20, at 3pm EST, International Criminal Court Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo will give a short welcome address to officially inaugurate the Global Kids’ International Justice Center on our new sim The Justice Commons. We hope you all can make it!

The International Justice Center is an independent public information and action center supporting the International Criminal Court and related human rights concerns. After his address, the ICC prosecutor will answer questions from the virtual audience, facilitated by Global Kids’ staff. Following this, the Center will be video streaming a MacArthur Foundation-sponsored panel discussion and keynote address on “The Emerging International Justice System” taking place in New York City. The event begins with a live panel discussion at 4:30pm with several major human rights officials. To conclude the event, former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan will deliver a keynote address at 9pm.

The ICC prosecutor’s address and the video streamed events will be accessible online both at the International Justice Center in Second Life and on the web at http://www.justicecenter.net.

More details on this day-long series of events will be announced shortly…

Written by: rikomatic

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“In the Pink” virtual show to combat gender violence premieres this Saturday

The set of "In the Pink" production in Second Life

On March 8 and 9, a collaborative of Second Life residents will be presenting an original production called "In the Pink," a series of one-acts intended to fight gender violence.  The inspiration is Eve Ensler’s play "The Vagina Monologues" and co-incides with a series of real worlds events called "V-Day" to draw attention to the issue of violence against women.  The premiere is this Saturday, March 8 at 1:30PM PST at Ivy Falls (click here to teleport.)  The show repeats at 5:30PM that day, and again on Sunday at 2:30 and 6:30PM. 

This is from their press release:

Rekka Berchot: performer and set designer for "In the Pink" production in Second Life

“IN THE PINK” celebrates the strength of women, exploring sexuality and what it means to be a woman in real life and on Second Life. The diverse collection of voices and actors guarantees a unique and highly entertaining experience in both theater and in Second Life, as well as an opportunity to contribute to organizations that support programs that free women from violence. The play will be performed by avatars from all over the world using voice and backed by slides, offering insight and provoking discussion.

I ran into the lovely Rekka Berchot (pictured here), one of the performers in the play and set designer, hard at work getting the stage ready.  She took a break from prim wrangling to chat and drop on me a cool umbrella and t-shirt for the production, which I will be proudly sporting for the next few days.

Written by: rikomatic

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It’s official: SLCC Nonprofit mini-track will be produced and organized by Glitteractica and Rik Riel

Please check back on the SLCC Blog for details, as it gets closer to September, there will be more informaiton. Remember that we have a Wiki Page where you can volunteer and post your ideas. So far, we have a pretty solid idea of the four sessions (or so) that will be featured in that mini-track. We are still looking for sponsorships, so please contact me, if you are interested in being a sponsor!

Also, if you want to attend, let me know about that too.

Written by: Glitteractica_Cookie

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Sharon Burns’ Virtual Worlds video tour

I just took Sharon Burns’ virtual worlds tour and I recommend it, especially if you always wanted to know about the leading virtual worlds, but SL eats up all your time, and you couldn’t possibly dare to enter another metaverse.

She surveyed kids’ and adults’ virtual worlds (also referred to as: immersive worlds, metaverses, the 3-D web and MMORPG)

Here is a snapshot of the landscape of worlds she covers, and a few words on each one:

  • There.com– Similar Audience to SL, not as much role playing, a few nonprofits are there, they have 1 million active users, and users can purchase There bucks (they have a currency).
  • Entropia– Not much to say except that it is a MMORPG (Massive Multi-player Online Role-playing game) with fierce graphics and their users spend a long time on the game. She cited MMORPGs to the new way that people are having online community
  • World Of Warcraft– They are the grand daddy of all MMORPGs. They have 10 million active users, nuff said.
  • Gaia Online — They have an audience of 8-18 year olds. Most of their users are in the 14-16 year old range. The have art contests and poetry forums. It’s a creative space. I think what makes Gaia online particularly compelling (and Sharron may not have known this, b/c she did not reference this) is that their accompanying discussion forum that is the online community companion to the virtual world is the number one forum on the Internet. with nearly 12 million members.
  • Club Penguin– For kids, acquired by Disney for an enormous amount of money, it costs $5.95/month to play and there are 15 million registered users
  • Hi pi Hi– Launched this year, in Mandarin, a chinese version of Second Life that has commerce, community and collaboration.
  • Y-ville– Launched in 1999, it’s an education-based virtual world that is mainly focused on science learning. It has the backing of orgs like NASA and the CDC. Mostly girls belong to Y-ville.
  • Webkins– it was the first site to integrate a real-world purchase with a game or virtual world. You buy (adopt) a toy and then use the secret code on the product to access the world, where you can dress and house your pet. It’s a kids’ site, obviously.
  • Mokitown– for 8-12 year olds, a community about traffic and safety.

    Although this tour was only 8 minutes, it provided a good fly-over of the landscape. There was very little mention of nonprofits, as most of the above virtual worlds do not have a nonprofit presence. The real tour that we are all on the edge of our seats for is the part 2, the Second Life tour. I will be sure to let you all know about it, when it comes out.

    • Written by: Glitteractica_Cookie

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    Community Voice Mail wins philanthropy award

    NPC resident Community Voice Mail (http://www.cvm.org/) was recently recognized for their work; from the press release:

    Community Voice Mail today announced it is the recipient of the prestigious Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy (CECP) Directors Nonprofit Excellence Award on National Corporate Philanthropy Day in New York. The national nonprofit is being recognized for its exceptional long-standing partnership with Cisco and the Cisco Foundation, who nominated it for the award. The partnership is being honored as an excellent example of how a nonprofit organization and global corporation can come together and have a significant impact on major social issues of homelessness and the technology/telecommunications gap that exists for the poor.

    Congratulations!

    Written by: madcowley

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    Free Event Fri. Feb. 29th:Using Virtual Worlds and Emerging Technologies for People with Disabilities

    Mark your calendars for Friday, Feb. 29th , 2008: Join us for a 1-day free online event happening on TechSoup.org’s Community forums and in Second Life:

    Using Virtual Worlds and Emerging Technologies for People with Disabilities

    This two-part, interactive event will take place in two locations online:

    First, the live discussion in the virtual world of Second Life at 9am PST.

    The follow-up discussion will take place for the rest of the day, 10AM PST- 6PM PST, in TechSoup’s Accessible Technology & Public Computing forum.

    Event Schedule:

    9 AM PST in the Nonprofit Commons Amphitheater in Second Life: Simon Stevens (aka Simon Walsh in Second Life) will be speaking about his work in Second Life. Simon Walsh is chief executive of Enable Enterprises which manages the Wheelies nightclub for people with disabilities in Second Life and the Second Ability Second Life simulator. In real life, Simon has cerebral palsy and lives in Coventry, UK. He is a disability consultant and trainer working with many organizations large and small. You can watch a profile of Simon Stevens on YouTube (see above).

    Simon will give a virtual talk via text chat in the Nonprofit Commons amphitheater, in the virtual world of Second Life.

    10AM PST- 6PM PST –the follow-on discussion will continue in an all-day, asynchronous (not-live) forum on TechSoup. This event will occur in a question and answer format in the TechSoup Accessible Technology & Public Computing forum, where we’ll discuss issues such as:

    -Innovative ways that emerging technologies are making technology more accessible for people with disabilities

    -Ways people with disabilities use technologies to expand their communities?

    -How can we work to make accessibility a design priority in the virtual world as well as the real world?

    -What are some free resources to help people with disabilities find accessible technology tools?

    -How can nonprofit organizations help make technology more accessible for people with disabilities?

    Join us Feb. 29th in the Nonprofit Commons in Second Life at 9am PST, and then in the TechSoup Accessible Technology & Public Computing forum for a free all-day, asynchronous (not live) online event as we explore these topics and more.

    If you have any questions, please email: Community@techsoup.org.

    No registration is needed; just show up and post your questions!

    Written by: penguin kuhn

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    Global Kids is hiring an Online Community Developer/Content Editor

    Global Kids Inc., a New York City based non-profit organization dedicated to transforming urban youth into successful students and global and community leaders, is seeking to fill a short-term freelance position as Online Community Developer/Content Editor, to be filled within our New York City offices or remotely. The position will run from mid-March until end of June.

    The Online Community Developer/Content Editor will work with staff at Global Kids to create the structure and content for a new social networking site called “RezEd: A Hub for Virtual World Educators.” This project is designed to provide educators using virtual worlds with access to the highest quality resources and research in the field, and to use the most effective technology to establish a strong network of those using virtual worlds for education. RezEd features will include podcasts, newsletters, best practice documents, contributor blogs, an event calendar, job postings, resource library, listserv, and other social networking functions.

    See the complete job description at holymeatballs.org.

    Written by: rikomatic

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    Katie sustained a serious leg injury. Please help.

    Dear Friends of Great Strides (a Nonprofit Commons tenant on Aloft Island),

    Katie, a 5 year old Gypsy Vanner who lives at our farm and works with clients, sustained a rather severe leg injury this week. While we are pleased to report that she is recovering from her surgery, she will require several weeks of hospital care, followed by an extensive recovery period back home.

    With seed funding from our JAM Fund, which covers extraordinary expenses for horses participating in our program, we are launching a fundraiser whose first priority will be to cover the cost of her surgery and subsequent care. The cost of the surgery alone is already exceeding our available funds by several thousand dollars. Any donations raised in excess of the cost of her care will be used to replenish the JAM fund.

    Each and every member of our herd selflessly contributes to the healing work at Great Strides each and every day. Here is our opportunity to give something back when one of our herd is in need.

    Please keep Katie in your thoughts as she begins her journey toward recovery. And, if you can, please make a contribution to the JAM fund in Katie’s name. Any assistance you can provide will be greatly appreciated.

    To help, and see a picture of her on a better day, please go to:

    http://www.greatstrides.org/Katie2.html

    or our Facebook Cause page

    http://apps.facebook.com/causes/view_cause/6822?recruiter_id=2240190

    and click on Donate or Donate Now.

    Inworld in Second Life, donors may also visit the Great Strides barn on Aloft Island, in the Nonprofit Commons, and contribute to the donation box.

    Thank you one and all.

    Brad

    Brad Lewis (RL)
    Veri Oddfellow (SL)
    Board Chair
    Great Strides
    www.GreatStrides.org

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    Written by: jharyaconel

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    NetSquared MashUp Challenge

    Handyland speaking

    Handyland Fairymeadow, a member of the NetSquared project team, spoke at the meeting today at the Nonprofit Commons Ampitheater about the NetSquared MashUp Challenge.

    Ok, first you might be wondering, what is a mashup? Handyland started by explaining. Wikipedia has a pretty good definition:

      In technology, a mashup is a web application that combines data from more than one source into a single integrated tool; an example is the use of cartographic data from Google Maps to add location information to real-estate data from Craigslist, thereby creating a new and distinct web service that was not originally provided by either source.

    NetSquared is a project of TechSoup, that seeks to spur responsible adoption of social web tools by social benefit organizations.

    Got an idea of how to combine data from more than one source into an integrated tool that would increase awareness around an issue? Maybe you have an idea of how one or more applications can work with Second Life to help nonprofits? Then you’ll want to submit it to the NetSquared MashUp Challenge.

    Handyland went on to share how the NetSquared project is awarding a share of $100,000 in prize money, and a trip to the NetSquared Conference, to the top 20 winners of the NetSquared Mashup Challenge. You can submit your idea for a mashup with social impact. Entries are accepted until March 14, 2008 at 5 PM PST.

    Handyland explained that you don’t have to have the tech skills to create your mashup, just the idea. Your application will explain the change that you are trying to make, as well as the information/data sources that you believe can be married to help create that change. The NetSquared Team will reach out to web-savvy collaborators to help translate your idea into a Mashup Project.

    From there, Handyland continued, teams of developers will start building your mashup. The week of March 17th, the NetSquared Community will vote for the mashups they think are the most innovative, and that will create the greatest social impact.

    On March 24 the top 20 mashups will be announced, and the winners will be invited to attend this year’s NetSquared Conference (N2Y3) in San Jose, CA May 27-28, 2008. Each of the top 20 mashups will get an allowance for travel (including airfare to and from the Conference, along with a hotel room for two nights).

    At the Conference, project teams will have an opportunity to display and discuss their mashups, and attendees will vote to select the top three. All twenty projects at the Conference will receive a share of $100,000 in prize money. The share will be determined by voting at the Conference.

    Handyland answered questions from avatars about the challenge. The contest is open to everyone worldwide, though the submission form is in English. You can find out  more information on the NetSquared site or contact net2 [at] techsoup [dot] org. And if you’re a developer who wants to help build the mashups, email Billy Bicket at bbicket [at] techsoup [at] org

    Written by: penguin kuhn