Exploring the Internet of Things for the June 12th Nonprofit Commons Meeting

This Friday, June 12th, TechSoup’s Nonprofit Commons in Second Life meeting will feature Barbara Truman (D’lightful Doowangle in Second Life) and a discussion on the promise and pitfalls of realizing the Internet of Things (IoT). IoT has considerable implications for privacy and security concerns, but the promise for philanthropic collaboration means that wicked problems can also be addressed like never before. She will give an overview of the Internet of Things, as well as share insights, potential applications, and proceedings from recent events.   
In March 2015, Barbara co-chaired along with Robert Daniel, president of BlueGrid CyberSecurity Training, the Security, Privacy & Identity Track of the Federal Consortium of Virtual Worlds (FCVW) Workshop (http://consortium.militarymetaverse.org), and crafted a region representing a megacity for the purpose of imagining applications of the Internet of Things (IoT). Two presentations were held where IoT implications were discussed by University of Central Florida administrators, Dr. Michael Macedonia and David Metcalf. The topics involved shipping, transportation, military and intelligence operations, manufacturing, medical simulation, social entrepreneurship, and IoT in a smart home. Barbara recently attended the US National Institute for Technical Standards (NIST) Global City Challenge (https://www.us-ignite.org/globalcityteamsexpo) in Washington DC where 63 teams presented their IoT innovations, and the the M-Enabling Summit (http://www.m-enabling.com) that showcased assistive technologies including the use of the Internet of Things.
 
A copy of the IoT Megacity regions are currently being hosted by John Silver on the Sim Valley OpenSim Grid in the Netherlands. Participants are invited to create an avatar on the Sim Valley Grid for a tour of the IoT Megacity after the NonProfit Commons meeting. Volunteers are sought to build out the extended regions to expand the city and build more detailed uses of IoT and illustrate societal impact for both promise and peril. 
 
Barbara Truman (D’lightful Doowangle) is a researcher, social activist, and community builder. She studies presence and collaboration using immersive environments and avatars across disciplines and domains of education, government, and military. At the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida, Barbara founded an award-winning department responsible for creating online programs that included faculty and multimedia development for Online@UCF. Her background is in Instructional Systems Design from UCF and she has a certificate in Human Performance Technology from the University of West Florida and a doctorate in Computer Science, Emerging Media from Colorado Technical University. Barbara serves as a Strategic Advisor for Immersive Learning & Collaboration in UCF’s Institute for Simulation & Training for the Mixed Emerging Technology Integration Lab. Barbara is also establishing a non-profit, simulation corporation for philanthropy using virtual worlds called Fusion Unlimited Networks Research. http://barbaratruman.com/research     
 
Join us in Second Life!
Nonprofit Commons Weekly Meeting
Friday, June 12th, 8:30 AM PDT / SLT
Plush Nonprofit Commons Amphitheater
 
AGENDA (all times below PT)
8:30 am Introductions
8:40 am TechSoup Announcements 
8:45 am Mentors Central 
9:00 am Featured Presentation – Promise and Pitfalls for Realizing the Internet of Things 
9:45 am Open Mic / Announcements
10:00 am Tour of the IoT Megacity, Sim Valley Grid information: http://www.simvalley.nl/?lang=en
 
The mission of the Nonprofit Commons in Second Life is to create a community for nonprofits to explore and learn about virtual worlds, foster connections, and discover the many ways in which nonprofits might utilize the unique environment of Second Life to achieve their missions. 

Written by: Rhiannon Chatnoir