Global Kids' Online Leadership Program tag:www.olpglobalkids.org,2010://1 2010-03-16T18:25:09Z Movable Type 3.33 OLP's 2008 Year End Review tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.3401 2008-12-31T16:57:27Z 2009-09-02T20:58:55Z The year 2008 was a remarkable period for the Online Leadership Program at Global Kids. It is challenging to even pick just a few standouts: An AIDS orphan in Ugandan exchanges text messages from her cell phone with a dozen... Rik http://globalkids.org GK 2008 year in review
The year 2008 was a remarkable period for the Online Leadership Program at Global Kids. It is challenging to even pick just a few standouts: An AIDS orphan in Ugandan exchanges text messages from her cell phone with a dozen teenagers in Teen Second Life; high school students conceive and produce a web-based game about local heroes during Hurricane Katrina; youth produce a seven-minute long animated movie about racism as an obstacle to education around the world; a high school class in Brooklyn uses a virtual world to learn about and create their own simulations about science; hundreds of young people across four virtual worlds watch Kofi Annan receive a major human rights award; incarcerated teens use a virtual world to learn how to create positive change in their real community; youth in Chicago and New York City collaborate online with paleotologists on a fossil dig in Tanzania; nearly 1,500 educators share knowledge and advice on how to use virtual worlds for education.

Global Kids would like to mark the new year by presenting a brief flyover of some of our major accomplishments over the past twelve months.
]]> CIVIC PARTICIPATION

  • Games that Change Lives: Playing for Keeps

Playing 4 Keeps is an after-school program in which young people learn about global issues through playing and building socially-conscious online games. This year, we launched "Tempest in Crescent City" a web-based game that recognizes local heroes that emerged during the Hurricane Katrina disaster while educating its players about the essentials of disaster readiness. Meanwhile our game "Ayiti: the Cost of Life", developed by teens during the 2005-2006 school year, has been played over 2 million times.

  • Connecting Cell Phones and Virtual Worlds: Switchboard

While virtual worlds have enormous potential for education and civic engagement, they are largely inaccessible for people on the other side of the Digital Divide, particular people in the Global South. In order to address this disparity, Global Kids sponsored the development of a tool we call Switchboard. Switchboard is a fairly simple web-based system for exchanging short text messages between cell phones and virtual worlds such as Second Life. In September, Global Kids organized the first public test of Switchboard, facilitating a text conversation between a Victoria, a Ugandan teen, and a dozen young people in Teen Second Life.

  • Real Change through Virtual Worlds: The Dream it. Do it. Initiative

In collaboration with Ashoka's Youth Venture, OLP supported young people to make real change in the world around them through our virtual Dream it. Do it. Program. In 2008 the D.I.D.I. Initiative reached hundreds of young people worldwide, including youth in a U.S. jail who received $1000 in funding to bring positive change to their local community while still incarcerated.


GLOBAL ISSUES

  • Digging Virtual Fossils: I Dig Tanzania

In July 2008, Global Kids, the Field Museum of Chicago and the Biodiversity Synthesis Center worked together to organize the "I Dig Tanzania" virtual summer camp. This innovative project brought together 16 teens in Chicago and New York to learn about paleontology, scientific field research, and Tanzania culture using the virtual world of Teen Second Life. This blog post and YouTube video summarize the camp experience.

  • Supporting a Global Justice Network: the International Justice Center

On March 20, Global Kids launched the International Justice Center in Second Life. The inaugural event featured a discussion with Luis Moreno-Ocampo, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and Lloyd Axworthy, former foreign minister of Canada. Later that same day, the Justice Center hosted a simulcast of an address by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan that was broadcast to the Web and to four online communities: Second Life, Teen Second Life, Whyville, and There.com. This brief video gives you some taste of what this historic multi-world simulcast was like.

  • Empowering Teens Virtually: Power of Citizenry in SL

In the past year, over a dozen teens in this leadership program created and helped facilitate global issue oriented events in Teen Second Life, reaching over 500 other teens through their projects. Leading events ranging from immigration workshops to mock presidential elections, these teens, located across the world, displayed the potential of virtual worlds to provide a platform of peer education on global issues.

  • Digital Movies that Matter: The Virtual Video Project


On June 26, at the Sony Wonderlab in Manhattan, a diverse group of New York City public high school students, involved in Global Kids' Virtual Video Project, premiered "Race to Equality," an important new animated movie that exposes how racism relates to equal access to education. The film was created by our youth entirely in Teen Second Life. The first VVP movie "A Child's War" produced in 2007, has been viewed over 10,000 times on YouTube and screened at conferences, film festivals and on television.


21ST CENTURY LEARNING SKILLS

  • Teleporting to Antarctica to Measure Climate Change : Science in Second Life Class

Global Kids launched a high school level class to teach basic science skills from a global perspective, while meeting New York state standards. The class met every day in person in GK’s High School for Global Citizenship and online through Teen Second Life. Through the virtual world, the students visited simulations of places around the world like Naples, Italy, where they learned about the environmental impact of garbage, and Antarctica, where they flew into the atmosphere to measure the impact of global warming. An outside evaluator found that the students’ attitudes towards science-related careers changed positively over the course of the class while the grades of low achieving students showed significant improvement.

  • Youth as Producers: the Media Masters Program

At the start of this school year, Global Kids had the opportunity to create a new school-based program here in New York City at Global Kids' High School for Global Citizenship. Working with MIT's Project New Media Literacies, we've been working to create a program based off of activities developed at MIT that promote civic learning and participation through a wide range of participatory media tools. Through blogging, mapping, photography, video production and more, teens in Media Masters work to create a Digital Portfolio of media artifacts that along with a Digital Transcript will display their acquisition of new media literacies. You can check out some of the program's early work here.

  • Youth Informing Professionals: The Digital Media Youth Advisory

This group of teens has worked for three years to inform the MacArthur Foundation's Digital Media and Learning initiative through their unique voices and perspectives as young people. In the past year, they've worked with Harvard's Goodplay Project, MIT's Project New Media Literacies, the Pew Internet and American Life Project and others to help keep the overall MacArthur initiative grounded in the real experiences and opinions of teens.


PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

  • Building the Field of Virtual World Educators: RezEd.org

In April, Global Kids launched RezEd.org, a community of practice that brings attention to the myriad ways virtual worlds are being used for learning in various settings. RezEd covers a broad educational virtual worlds through news updates; multimedia resources; a podcast series with youth, theorists, practitioners and experts in the field; various digital media resources, weekly best practices, guest-moderated discussions, etc. Although still in beta, RezEd experienced tremendous growth, growing from a handful of educators largely active in Second Life to 1,400 members using a variety of virtual world platforms for learning. Read the first seasonal RezEd report for more on this.

  • Building the Field: Curriculum Support

As part of our work to support educators using virtual worlds in their work, Global Kids released the free Second Life curriculum in September. The curriculum, divided into nine levels, covers everything an educator or student would need to know to use Second Life, whether on their own or within an educational setting. Released under a Creative Commons license, the curriculum has already been adapted by educators into different formats, including a print version and a digital booklet in Second Life.

  • Bringing the Real World to Virtual Audiences: Simulcasting


In 2008, Global Kids produced a wide range of "mixed reality" and simulcast real world events that brought new audiences from around the world to conferences, ceremonies, roundtables and workshops on a range of subject matter. These included an address by Archbishop Desmond Tutu on youth leadership, an awards ceremony featuring Kofi Annan, the first annual symposium of the Joan Ganz Cooney Center, and a film premiere of three youth-written films.

  • Documenting Best Practices: Global Kids White Papers

In January, Global Kids released two white papers on education and non-profit activities in virtual worlds, based on findings from the 2007 Second Life Community Convention. "Reports from the Field: Second Life Community Convention 2007 Education Track Summary" was prepared by California educator Cathy Arreguin, while "Best Practices for Non-profits in Second Life" was authored by Rik Panganiban.

  • Public Appearances and Writing

Global Kids Online Leadership Program staff spoke and wrote about our work, reaching thousands of people over 2008. We addressed more than 3,500 people at more than 50 events over the course of the year, appearing both in person and virtually. In September, Barry Joseph gave a keynote address at the Second Life Community Convention and the SLED Community Conference on "Why Second Life Can't Tip: The Power and Perils of Living la Vida Ludic." In addition, we published a range of reports online and in print, notably Barry Joseph's chapter on "Why Johnny Can't Fly: Treating Games as a Form of Youth Media Within a Youth Development Framework" as part of MacArthur Foundation series on Digital Media and Learning.


Our thanks to our many supporters, partners and friends who made this work possible, in particular: AMD, Ashoka Youth Venture, Asia Society, the Biodiversity Synthesis Center, the Field Museum, Gamelab, the Joan Ganz Cooney Center, GirlStart, HASTAC, the International Criminal Court Public Affairs Division, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, MediaSnackers, Microsoft, MIT (Project New Media Literacies), Motorola, Sandbox Summit, Taking IT Global , and the USC Network Culture Project.

]]> Global Kids & Scenarios USA Present Virtual Premiere of 2008 Real Deal Youth Films tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.3343 2008-12-02T21:54:10Z 2008-12-17T20:46:04Z On Wednesday December 17, Scenarios USA and Global Kids will be hosting the virtual premiere of the three youth-written short films produced by Scenarios on the subject "What's the Real Deal about Masculinity?". Taking place on both the Teen... Rik http://globalkids.org Scenarios premiere SL poster 1208
On Wednesday December 17, Scenarios USA and Global Kids will be hosting the virtual premiere of the three youth-written short films produced by Scenarios on the subject "What's the Real Deal about Masculinity?". Taking place on both the Teen Grid and Main Grid of Second Life, both youth and adult residents will be able to watch excerpts from the three films, listen to a live interview with two of the youth writers, and ask questions about the films.

DATE: December 17, 2008
TIME: 12:30pm PST / 3:30pm EST
LOCATIONS : Machinima Island , Teen Second Life (teleport link)
International Justice Center, Second Life (teleport link)



View the Virtual Premiere of the movies live here:



This stream will be active during the event only.


Scenarios USA is a New York-based nonprofit that that uses writing and filmmaking to foster youth leadership, advocacy and self-expression in under-served teens. Scenarios USA asks teens to write about the issues that shape their lives for the annual "What's the REAL DEAL?" writing contest. The winning writers are partnered with some of Hollywood's finest filmmakers to transform their stories into award-winning short films. 15 million people a year watch the Scenarios USA films at film festivals, on television and in high schools nationwide. Scenarios USA believes that by valuing youth and listening to their opinions we can have an impact on promoting healthy relationships and lowering the rate of HIV, STDs and pregnancy among teens. For more information, see the Scenarios USA website.

]]> [rezed] RezEd's first virtual world education conference a success! tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.3294 2008-11-18T16:41:48Z 2008-12-03T16:02:55Z Rik http://globalkids.org

We had a very successful Second Life conference on education in virtual worlds yesterday.  This was the first virtual conference sponsored by RezEd.org, the social network for virtual world educators. The RezEd conference featured a panel discussion with educators working in Second Life, Google Lively and Dizzywood; a "birds of a feather" breakout session; and a fun social mixer to close out the evening. With 60+ avatars from a range of institutions and backgrounds, this was a perfect example of how virtual worlds can enable networking, collaboration, and learning in an immersive and ludic environment.

Update November 24: One of our speakers Ryan Clemmens tells us that he was informed 30 minutes prior to speaking at the RezEd conference on November 17 that Google was closing the Lively virtual world at the end of the year. Thus, this was probably the last public address on Google Lively before it was publicly announced on November 19 that it was shutting its virtual doors.

]]> The RezEd conference was only part of four hours of programming built around a "sneak preview" of the MacArthur Foundation's new island in Second Life, called simply "Foundations."  Rather than spend the time talking about the Foundation, the sneak preview focused on the work of the large constellation of public good projects supported by MacArthur -- from the Ability Commons work with people with disabilities, the Encyclopedia of Life digital archive of all living species, to the "I Dig Tanzania" summer camp that Global Kids and the Field Museum organized this past July.

We will have a more detailed report, audio recordings of the proceedings, more images and video from the events online soon at RezEd.org and networkculture.usc.edu.

Thanks to all of you who attended and contributed to making this day such a great success.  For those of you who missed the sneak preview, the Foundations sim is now open for business at this teleport link.  There's a lot of great content in there about how MacArthur operates and some featured projects that they support.

]]> Sneak Preview of MacArthur Foundation's new Second Life island on November 17 tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.3228 2008-11-05T19:45:29Z 2008-11-11T17:59:46Z On Monday November 17, Global Kids invites you to "Real World Impact From the Virtual World" in Second Life. The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the USC Network Culture Project and Global Kids invite you to a... Rik http://globalkids.org Real World Impacts from Virtual World Event Nov 17 2008
On Monday November 17, Global Kids invites you to "Real World Impact From the Virtual World" in Second Life. The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the USC Network Culture Project and Global Kids invite you to a sneak preview of a new Second Life sim that features MacArthur programs and grantees. The event will be held on November 17, 2008 from 1-5pm PST.

Join us to learn about how groups use virtual spaces like Second Life to build real opportunities -- preserving native peoples' cultures, creating accessible spaces for people with disabilities, helping obese people make healthy life choices and teaching underprivileged youth about paleontology and science.

This interactive series of events will take place on Foundations Sim (click here to teleport) and the neighboring archipelago that includes the Network Culture Project, Justice Commons (click here to teleport ) and Aloft Nonprofit Commons (click here to teleport).

The full schedule follows...

]]> NOVEMBER 17 SCHEDULE:

1:00PM PST: Real World Impact from the Public Good Community Challenge: Challenge awardees share their lessons learned. Hosted by USC Network Culture Project

2:00PM PST: Tours of the Foundations Sim will be led by avatars from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation at Foundations sim (click here to teleport)
Panel and discussion on Alliance Building in Virtual Worlds hosted by Nonprofit Commons (click here to teleport)

3:00PM PST: "Dropping Knowledge: How Virtual World Educators Are Changing Lives" Panel Discussion on Using Virtual Worlds for Learning, hosted by RezEd.org at Justice Commons (click here to teleport )

4:00PM PST: "Birds-of-a-feather" Breakout Sessions and Social Mixer hosted by Global Kids at Justice Commons (click here to teleport )

]]> [IJC] Using Virtual Art for Political Change: report on talk and tour with digital artists Peggy Weil and Nonny de la Peña tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.3216 2008-10-27T17:26:58Z 2009-06-13T18:48:46Z Rik http://globalkids.org politicalartinSL_013
On Friday, October 24, we had a really neat event at the Global Kids' International Justice Center in Second Life, featuring digital artists / activists Peggy Weil (Ping Rau in SL) and Nonny de la Peña (Nonny Writer).  Thirty-some avatars logged in to listen to Nonny and Peggy talk about their innovative art installations in SL that explore themes of due process / Habeas Corpus, immigration, nationalism, and civil liberties. 

You can listen to the audio here:

A more complete report on the event follows...

]]> politicalartinSL_001

Peggy and Nonny began by describing "Gone Gitmo", a virtual re-creation of the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center operated by the US government to detain suspected terrorists.  The installation combines avatar animations, voice acting, screen effects, clothing, real life video from Gitmo, and a 3D build to immerse the person in the experience of being detained and deprived of your basic liberties. Nonny talked about how strong people's reactions were to the installation, from anger to fear. 

Camp Gitmo in Second Life

They are working on a "Camp Delta" expansion of "Gone Gitmo" that shows in an interactive way how the Habeas Corpus rights of prisoners are denied.  Nonny described how the experience would work.  Your avatar would be placed in a holding cell. When they tried to ask for a lawyer, a guard would inform them that they don't have right to counsel.  Through interaction with the guards, the avatar would find out that they don't have a right to visitors, to make outside calls, or access information about why they are being detained.

Lastly, they are building a "Contemplation Area" that would centralize media on the struggle to close Camp Gitmo.  The Contemplation Chamber will display poems written by detainees, listings of prominent world figures who have called for Gitmo to be closed, and audio recordings by the detainees and actors reading transcripts from detainee hearings, sponsored by the ACLU.

Then Peggy and Nonny introduced their newest work-in-progress, "Mauerkrankheit/Wallsickness" an evolving art installation depicting current and historical walls dividing nations. It begins with a section of the proposed "border fence" dividing Mexico from the U.S. and continues with segments from the Gaza Fence, the Melilla Fence (the E.U. funded wall to separate Spanish territories from Morocco), the Berlin Wall, the Great Wall of China and other important political and historical border walls. 

Intended as a collaborative effort, Peggy and Nonny announced that they would love to work with other groups to build out "Mauerkrankheit" with their own concepts of walls separating nations and peoples.  Several audience members expressed interest in participating.  I could easily imagine my own group Global Kids working with teens on the Teen Grid to build their own version of "Mauerkrankheit" --- since after all there exists a virtual wall between the Teen and Adult Grids of Second Life.

politicalartinSL_008

We got a guided tour of "Mauerkrankheit/Wallsickness" by Peggy and Nonny, which was really powerful for both the artists and the visitors. "It's really moving for me to be standing here with a lot of people," Peggy commented in the middle of the tour.  "This has been a very private thing that we've been working on. We've been doing it in fits and starts. It feels far more real to have a group of people here looking at it. It feels really supportive and I'm happy that you are all here."

politicalartinSL_009

Avatars flew around to different parts of the wall, and mused on how to use the installation in different ways.  Someone suggested that the wall area should be a "no fly" zone so that avatars would have to contend with the limitations of being blocked by the walls.  We also talked about having a "graffiti" wall that people could tag with their own text, images and video, or maybe even animated hammers that avatars could use to break through the wall.

To close the discussion, we talked about ways that other groups could use the powerful creation tools of Second Life to explain and expand their missions to new audiences.  The virtual Camp Darfur was an obvious example, which In Kenzo talked about.  We provided in the sim a list of other virtual artwork all over the grid that deals with social and political issues:

It was a really remarkable event that demonstrated the emotive and motivational power of artwork and interactive virtual installations to highlight important political and social issues.  Thanks to Peggy and Nonny for sharing their vision and gifts with us, and the world.

]]> [IJC] Peggy Weil and Nonny de la Peña Discuss Using Art for Political Activism at Justice Center October 24 tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.3212 2008-10-22T17:03:45Z 2008-10-27T17:34:00Z Can virtual art stimulate real-world political action? Find out on Friday, October 24, as digital media artists Peggy Weil (Ping Rau in SL) and Nonny de la Peña (Nonny Writer) discuss how they are using 3D artwork as a... Rik http://globalkids.org
Can virtual art stimulate real-world political action? Find out on Friday, October 24, as digital media artists Peggy Weil (Ping Rau in SL) and Nonny de la Peña (Nonny Writer) discuss how they are using 3D artwork as a form of political expression and civic engagement. At the Global Kids' Justice Center (click here to teleport ) from 10-11am PST on October 24.

Peggy and Nonny have been involved in a number of ground-breaking digital media projects that explore the intersections of art and politics, from "The Redistricting Game" that Peggy designed to "Unconstitutional" a documentary of civil liberties in America post 9/11 produced by Nonny. They will talk about their latest explorations of political artwork in SL, from the "Gone Gitmo" project to the "Mauerkrankheit/Wallsickness" installation that was an Annenberg Public Good Merit Award winner. Then we will teleport over to their exhibits to get a guided tour from them!

]]> [IJC] John Washburn speaks on the ICC and the US Presidency at the Justice Center tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.3126 2008-08-14T19:01:23Z 2008-08-14T19:57:57Z Yesterday, August 13, Mr. John Washburn, convenor of the American NGO Coalition for the ICC, spoke at the International Justice Center in Second Life to an attentive and energetic group of avatars. Mr. Washburn talked about the importance of... Rik http://globalkids.org John Washburn speaking at Justice Center
Yesterday, August 13, Mr. John Washburn, convenor of the American NGO Coalition for the ICC, spoke at the International Justice Center in Second Life to an attentive and energetic group of avatars. Mr. Washburn talked about the importance of the International Criminal Court to the United States and his views of what the next US president should do to support this important human rights instrument. Later John took questions from the audience.

To hear John's address, click the player below:
]]> DJ Doubledown Tandino played a mix of global grooves for the attendees, who danced in the plaza between the virtual ICC and the art gallery on the Justice Commons.
Meanwhile, attendees were encouraged to contribute to funds that support victims of human rights abuses in Darfur, the Congo, and elsewhere. Over L$10,000 was raised! Money donated will go to the International Criminal Court Victims Trust Fund and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Thanks everyone who contributed.
John Washburn speaking at Justice Center

Thanks everyone who participated, and special thanks to John Washburn and Doubledown Tandino for offering their unique expertise and energy.
]]> [staff] Streaming Diplomats: the challenges of working with real and virtual teens and adults tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.3082 2008-07-22T03:34:45Z 2008-07-22T03:37:49Z Today I helped organize a pretty successful mixed-reality Global Kids event, featuring Dr. Francis Deng, the UN Special Representative on Genocide, speaking about Darfur and the UN's response to situations like these. The Online Leadership Program of Global Kids,... Rik http://globalkids.org Dr Francis Deng speaking at International Justice Center in Second Life

Today I helped organize a pretty successful mixed-reality Global Kids event, featuring Dr. Francis Deng, the UN Special Representative on Genocide, speaking about Darfur and the UN's response to situations like these. The Online Leadership Program of Global Kids, which I'm a part of, is making concerted efforts to coordinate our work more closely with other Global Kids' programs that focus on New York teens.  While Second Lifers know about Global Kids as being innovators in virtual world education, our main work is face-to-face with thousands of real world teens in 25 schools in the wider New York City area.

My colleague Shawna and I developed a quick-and-dirty way of taking a program organized by the Global Kids Summer Institute at the Council on Foreign Relations and bring it into Second Life and Teen Second Life. 

]]> Shawna and I looked at the program planned for the Summer Institute participants to see what we would be the best fit to bring into Second Life.  While there were a number of interesting subjects being dealt with during the Summer Institute, from climate change to humanitarian intervention, we felt that an event focused on Darfur would be of interest both to our community of teens on the Teen Grid and to the adults involved with the International Justice Center on the main grid.  And hearing from a UN Special Representative on Genocide, who himself is a Sudanese national, talking about Darfur, seemed like too good of an opportunity to pass up.

Shawna worked with the Summer Institute organizer Eddie Mandry to get an idea of what the real world teens would be doing to prepare for Dr. Deng's speech.  They were doing a roleplaying exercise where different groups of teens got to represent various actors -- from the Sudanese government to the ICC to the international community -- and come up with their actions in response to the Genocide in Darfur.  Shawna adapted this roleplay activity to work with our teens on Global Kids island, which reportedly went quite well. (On the Main Grid, we skipped the roleplay, which I don't think would have worked as well with adults.)

The actual presentation by Dr. Francis Deng was easy to capture and stream.  All it involved was a laptop connected to the internet, a decent USB mic, and a program to set up an MP3 audio stream (we used Nicecast). We probably could have done a full video broadcast, but that seemed too iffy to arrange given the wifi-only environment and the challenges of ensuring a reliable video stream into Second Life.

Keeping the adults and teens engaged with the speaker was another challenge. It's one thing to be a teen in the same room as an elder Sudanese UN official speaking directly to you.  It's another to hear a disembodied voice come out of your computer speakers.  So we had to find ways to keep our audiences engaged, by having them comment on what Dr. Deng was speaking about, and asking them to submit questions that we could pose to the UN Special Rep.  I think we largely succeeded, but it's definitely hard work.

Getting the real world participants to understand and connect with what was happening virtually was another task.  One way was to make sure that the moderator asked for questions from the virtual participants, which we collected and passed along to Dr. Deng.  A better way was to have projected onto a screen a live image of Second Life, so that the speaker and the teens could envision what the virtual participants were experiencing.  An even better way would be to let the virtual participants speak for themselves and have Second Life voice projected into the room.  We didn't do this for this program, but I'd like to try and arrange it in the future.

Fortunately, the teen and adult participants all asked excellent questions. Dr. Deng handled them all carefully and diplomatically, as expected. If we had some post-event processing with the participants, I would have loved to get them to think about what things were left unsaid by the senior diplomat, and why. 

Numbers-wise, we had the attendance we expected given the timing of the event (summer, early afternoon): a half-dozen on the Teen Grid, another dozen in the Main Grid.  As an experiment, it was a success.  But for an established mixed-reality program we would have to think more intently about outreach and scalability.

For now, I'm satisfied that Shawna and myself, with the help of our colleague Rafi and GK fellows Sean and Michael, did our respective jobs competently, organized a unique and important mixed-reality event, and pushed forward the work of Global Kids and the Online Leadership Program.

]]> [staff] Happy International Justice Day! tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.3078 2008-07-17T14:16:40Z 2008-10-27T17:34:24Z Rik http://globalkids.org Me at Rome Treaty conference on the ICC July 1998
Press conference in Rome held by the Coalition for an ICC, July 1998. Credit: CICC.

Ten years ago today, the world took a historic step from impunity toward accountability by creating the International Criminal Court.  On July 17, 1998 in Rome Italy, 120 governments of the world signed into being the Rome Treaty on the International Criminal Court, "one of the most important advances in international law and human rights since the adoption of the UN Charter in 1948" according to my old boss Bill Pace of the Coalition for the ICC.The International Criminal Court is a permanent human rights tribunal based in the Hague, Netherlands, whose mission is to hold accountable those who commit the worst offenses of justice in the world, including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

I was privileged enough to be there in Rome for the treaty conference, at the time serving as the communications coordinator for the Coalition for an ICC.  I was responsible for the communications going into and out of the conference to our hundreds of allied organizations and activists around the world, including writing a daily newsletter and email blast to our constituents.  It was perhaps the most important thing that I have ever done in my 20 year career as an activist organizer.

Rik at ICC in The Hague

Today the ICC is doing remarkable things and having a broader impact around the world that we may not even be able to assess in this generation.  Notably:

  • This week, the ICC prosecutor applied for the indictment of Sudanese President Sudan Omar al-Bashir on genocide charges -- the first arrest warrant against a sitting head of state.
  • Last week, former Congolese Vice President and rebel leader Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo was arrested in Belgium and transferred to The Hague in the first arrest issued for the investigation into human rights violations in the Central African Republic.
  • The ICC is also proceeding with prosecutions against Thomas Lubanga Dyilo and Congolese warlords Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui.
  • The prosecutor is looking into situations in other regions, including Afghanistan and Colombia.
  • With the addition of Suriname earlier this week, the number of countries who have ratified the treaty is at 107!

These are amazing times. I'm so proud to have been able to have been able to play some small part in getting us to this point. And to be working now on the International Justice Center, a virtual space to support the ICC.

Visit the Coalition website for more on this significant achievement.

]]> [media] Virtual Worlds Collaborate to Spread Kofi Annan’s Message About International Justice: Global Kids Plays Lead Role in Bringing Event to Online Communities tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.2721 2008-06-03T13:38:44Z 2008-06-03T16:06:59Z NEWS RELEASE Global Kids 137 East 25th Street New York, NY 10010 www.globalkids.org 212-226-0130 Contacts: Jonah Kokodyniak, Global Kids, 212-226-2116, Jonah@globalkids.org There.com: Aimee Yoon, Dotted Line Communications, aimee@dottedlinecomm.com, 646.678.4980 Second Life: Peter Gray, Lewis PR, secondlife@lewispr.com, 415.992.4434 For Immediate Release:... joyce www.holymeatballs.org NEWS RELEASE

Global Kids
137 East 25th Street New York, NY 10010
www.globalkids.org
212-226-0130

Contacts:

Jonah Kokodyniak, Global Kids, 212-226-2116, Jonah@globalkids.org
There.com: Aimee Yoon, Dotted Line Communications, aimee@dottedlinecomm.com, 646.678.4980
Second Life: Peter Gray, Lewis PR, secondlife@lewispr.com, 415.992.4434

For Immediate Release:

Virtual Worlds Collaborate to Spread Kofi Annan’s Message About International Justice: Global Kids Plays Lead Role in Bringing Event to Online Communities

On March 20, 2008, spearheaded by Global Kids, Inc., a unique collaboration amongst virtual worlds, which combined report audiences of over 10 million users, streamed live from the Waldorf Astoria where Kofi Annan received the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation’s first award for international justice. While Annan spoke before a live audience of 1,200 people in New York City, hundreds more watched and discussed the live speech across four virtual world communities, creating the largest massively multiworld simulcast to date.

At events coordinated by Global Kids, Inc. within There.com, Whyville, Second Life and Teen Second Life, virtual world residents, both teens and adults, viewed the MacArthur Foundation awards ceremony in which Mr. Kofi Annan received the first MacArthur International Justice Award of $500,000 to be distributed to a non-profit of his choice. During the live presentation, the virtual audiences, led by Global Kids staff with support from the virtual worlds companies Makena (There.com), Numedeon (Whyville), and Linden Lab (Second Life), engaged in vigorous discussion and debate.

A demonstration video can be viewed at: http://youtube.com/watch?v=tEtDEdyf3bM and samples of the teen responses can be read at: http://tinyurl.com/6bn62x.

]]> “This unique collaboration among some of the largest teen-oriented virtual worlds emphasizes the importance of using virtual worlds for education and civic engagement,” said Global Kids’ Online Leadership Director, Barry Joseph. “It was inspiring to be part of such a unique collaboration with such amazing partners.”

“Virtual worlds continue to be used for commercial purposes and the platform must not be overlooked for education as well,” said Michael Wilson, CEO of Makena Technologies. “We are proud to support Global Kids and help to promote the work they are doing to make a difference for urban youth throughout the country.”

“We are continually amazed at the energy and enthusiasm our kids bring to the live events we host in Whyville,” said Jen Sun, President of Numedeon. “For many of them, this was the first time they’ve heard about Kofi Annan. We had a lively and inspiring discussion around international justice and civic awareness.”

“This is exactly the type of use I envisioned when we developed what would become Second Life almost nine years ago,” said Philip Rosedale, Founder and Chairman of the Board, Linden Lab. “I believe virtual worlds have a responsibility to not just enhance the lives of their users but make a tangible difference in their communities and the larger society. Global Kids’ innovative work in Second Life, and this event in particular, serve to demonstrate how virtual worlds can be used to address real world concerns.”

In April, Global Kids did it again, this time with a simulcast of a presentation by Archbishop Desmond Tutu (http://youtube.com/watch?v=iKRmP1wvsnA). These events exemplify Global Kids’ role as the foremost nonprofit in virtual world education. Since 2005, Global Kids has leveraged the educational potential of virtual worlds to inform and involve people in pressing international and public policy issues. Global Kids brings students from its New York-based programs into the virtual worlds and conducts youth leadership programming and streams audio and video of major international events into the worlds, as well. This work is conducted in collaboration with the MacArthur Foundation, UNICEF, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Youth Venture, and the International Criminal Court, among others.

About Global Kids, Inc. (globalkids.org)
Founded in 1989, Global Kids' mission is to transform urban youth into successful students and global and community leaders by engaging them in socially dynamic, content-rich learning experiences. Through its leadership development and academic enrichment programs, Global Kids educates youth about critical international and domestic issues and promotes their engagement in civic life and the democratic process. Through professional development initiatives, Global Kids provides educators with strategies for integrating experiential learning methods and international issues into urban classrooms. Over ninety percent of the high school seniors who participate in Global Kids’ leadership program graduate from high school.

]]> [ijc] Fellowship Available for International Justice Center tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.2473 2008-05-12T16:41:10Z 2008-05-13T20:41:07Z Global Kids is offering a fellowship to focus on event management for the International Justice Center (click here to teleport). The fellow will be expected to work with Global Kids staff to organize regular in-world events in that sim for... Rik http://globalkids.org Global Kids is offering a fellowship to focus on event management for the International Justice Center (click here to teleport). The fellow will be expected to work with Global Kids staff to organize regular in-world events in that sim for SL residents, human rights groups, and the general public.

Since 2005, Global Kids has leveraged the educational potential of virtual worlds to inform and involve people in pressing international and public policy issues. The International Justice Center builds on Global Kids’ groundbreaking work by establishing an online hub supporting the ICC and the global justice concerns it addresses. Developed and administered by Global Kids with funding from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, this innovative online learning center will provide resources for people to learn about the ICC, connect with ICC officials and advocates, and take action in support of human rights and international justice. For more information, see the IJC website at http://justicecenter.net .

The Justice Center Fellow will work in close coordination with Global Kids staff to organize regular gatherings in the Justice Commons sim as a means of promoting ongoing education, dialogue, news and information sharing on issues related to global justice and the ICC.

]]> Fellowship Duties
The principal duties will include:

* Coordinating biweekly in-world events on the Justice Commons sim, including speaker coordination, outreach, entertainment, and security
* Interfacing with real world non-profit groups to help them come in-world either via skype or avatar
* Building up the public presence of the Justice Center among relevant SL communities and constituencies
* Assisting with other special mixed-reality events that may take place in the Justice Center and on the web

Qualifications
The ideal candidate will :

* have a personal commitment to human rights / global justice issues (some education or background in human rights work is a plus)
* be well-versed in SL culture, connected to relevant SL communities and networks
* be knowledgeable about the technical details of streaming video and audio into SL

Stipend /Hours
The Justice Center Fellow will received a monthly stipend of L$ 18,000-24,000 per month based on experience and skills. The fellow is expected to commit approximately 6-10 hours a month to the fellowship.

To Apply
Please send a cover letter and resume either as notecards to Rik Riel or via email to rik@globalkids.org by May 19, 2008, 8PM SLT/PST.


About Global Kids
Founded in 1989, Global Kids’ mission is to transform urban youth into successful students and global and community leaders by engaging them in socially dynamic, content-rich learning experiences. Through its leadership development and academic enrichment programs, Global Kids educates youth about critical international and domestic issues and promotes their engagement in civil life and the democratic process.

In 2006, Global Kids became the first non-profit to develop a dedicated space for programming in the virtual world of Teen Second Life (TSL). Global Kids brings students from its New York-based programs into the organization’s headquarters to conduct youth leadership programming and stream audio and video of major international events. This innovative program is conducted in collaboration with the MacArthur Foundation, UNICEF, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Youth Venture, and the International Criminal Court, among others. More information on this program can be found on the blog http://holymeatballs.org/second_life/ and on Global Kids’ website at www.GlobalKids.org.

]]> [staff] Leveraging virtual worlds for civic action tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.2379 2008-05-01T14:53:34Z 2008-05-01T17:08:00Z One of the main reasons we created the International Justice Center in Second Life was to explore the challenge posed by MacArthur President Jonathan Fanton last year, who asked, "Might not there be a group in Second Life that could... Rik http://globalkids.org One of the main reasons we created the International Justice Center in Second Life was to explore the challenge posed by MacArthur President Jonathan Fanton last year, who asked, "Might not there be a group in Second Life that could come together to educate itself about the ICC and organize a campaign to persuade public and leaders that we should be part of this court?"

In other words, could Second Life be used as a vehicle for promoting public education about the court and catalyzing civic action in support of the ICC?

]]> The first goal of public education is relatively easy to conceive. Create a public virtual space where avatars can come to learn about the ICC, the cases before it, how it operates, and background on the crimes it adjudicates. This could be done through a virtual build that had textual, audio, video and other interactive content that educated about the ICC. In addition, in-world lectures and classes could teach about different aspects of the court. I think we are well on our way to accomplishing this goal based on our past and upcoming activities at the International Justice Center.

It's the second goal of civic action that is more complicated. How do you use a virtual world to stimulate action in the real world?

On the web, what civic action often means is:


  1. Contact Your Representative: Using web tools to help you send an email, call or write a letter to your congressperson, or head of state or other public official.
  2. Donate: Using e-commerce tools to get you to donate to a cause or charity.
  3. Join: Getting people to become members of a cause or organization.
  4. Connect: Bring people together with others who support the cause, either in their community or anywhere in the world. I.e. Meetups, web forums, chapter meetings, etc.
  5. Outreach: Using viral media and messaging to get the person to spread the message to their friends, family and colleagues.

The question is, do virtual worlds do any of these tasks any better than the web? I would say that 1 and 2 are non-starters. The web is just much better at these tasks, although there are lots of neat SL-to-email and vCommerce tools being created all the time. You can get people to "join" your cause through in-world groups in SL, which is not the same as being a dues-paying member, but still demonstrates some level of commitment.

So that leaves Connect and Outreach, which are perhaps the most promising for virtual worlds given their sense of presence and multi-user interactive aspects. Virtual worlds can offer opportunities for regular meetings of members and interested individuals to stay up-to-date on recent developments, get inspired by each other, strategize, and promote a sense of group identity. I feel a sense of commitment and connection to the Nonprofit Commons group in SL, mostly because I regularly attend their meetings every Friday, and socialize with several members on the side

Second Life offers many tools for public outreach -- from freebie objects and clothing, notecard givers, machinima, to free concerts and other forms of entertainment. A machinima video created in SL can reach hundreds and thousands of people around the world when posted to the web. A popular freebie bracelet might be worn by thousands of avatars, promoting your cause or message anytime anyone sees it.

So it seems to me that the way forward for the Justice Center over the next few months then is to explore how to create a regular meeting space and utilize virtual outreach tools to effectively spread the word about the ICC. Anyone want to make an anti-griefing Justice Shield for me?

]]> [ijc] Live Simulcast of "ICC101" event from DePaul University TODAY from 4-6:30pm PST tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.2286 2008-04-24T06:00:53Z 2008-05-13T20:41:35Z Global Kids, the International Human Rights Law Institute and the Institute for War Peace Reporting invite you to participate in a virtual discussion "ICC101 -- a basic orientation to the International Criminal Court" on Thursday, April 24, 2008 from... Rik http://globalkids.org IJClaunch_003
Global Kids, the International Human Rights Law Institute and the Institute for War Peace Reporting invite you to participate in a virtual discussion "ICC101 -- a basic orientation to the International Criminal Court" on Thursday, April 24, 2008 from 4-6:30PM PST. Held at the International Justice Center in Second Life (click here to teleport), the event will feature a video simulcast and Q&A from an “Introduction to the ICC” event at DePaul University, in Chicago.

Head to Justicecenter.net to view the live stream or come participate in-world!

The full event description follows...

]]> Here is the full event description:

“ICC101” Learn the Basics about the International Criminal Court During a Live Video Simulcast from DePaul University on Thursday April 24, 4-6:30PM PST

Global Kids, the International Human Rights Law Institute and the Institute for War Peace Reporting invite you to a basic orientation to the International Criminal Court, where you will find answers to important questions like:

  • What is the International Criminal Court (ICC)?
  • What crimes does it investigate?
  • How does the ICC relate to national and local courts?
  • What situations is the Court looking into and why?

To get answers to these questions and more, come to the Global Kids’ International Justice Center (teleport link) on Thursday April 24 from 4-6:30PM PST to get a basic introduction to the International Criminal Court from a panel of ICC experts.

WHAT: Video simulcast and Q&A from “Introduction to the ICC” event at DePaul University, Chicago, USA
WHERE: International Justice Center Amphitheater (click here to teleport)
Also viewable on the web at http://www.justicecenter.net
WHEN: Thursday, April 24, 4-6:30PM PST

SPEAKERS:


  • Caroline Ayugi, Institute for War Peace Reporting reporter, based in Gulu northern Uganda

  • Sita Balthazar, Amnesty International USA

  • Betty Bigombe, Former Minister of State and Chief Mediator in the northern Uganda conflict

  • Peter Eichstaedt, IWPR Africa editor and Author of First Kill Your Family: Uganda's Child Soldiers and the Lord's Resistance Army

  • John Washburn, Convener of the American NGO Coalition for an ICC

Global Kids, in cooperation with the International Human Rights Law Institute, will be streaming live video from this panel at DePaul University in Chicago into Second Life at the International Justice Center as well as on the web at http://www.justicecenter.net. Virtual participants will be able to ask questions to the participants.

For more information, contact Global Kids at rik@globalkids.org or see the International Justice Center website at http://www.justicecenter.net.


About Global Kids
Founded in 1989, Global Kids’ mission is to transform urban youth into successful students and global and community leaders by engaging them in socially dynamic, content-rich learning experiences. Through its leadership development and academic enrichment programs, Global Kids educates youth about critical international and domestic issues and promotes their engagement in civil life and the democratic process.

In 2006, Global Kids became the first non-profit to develop a dedicated space for programming in the virtual world of Teen Second Life (TSL). Global Kids brings students from its New York-based programs into the organization’s headquarters to conduct youth leadership programming and stream audio and video of major international events. This innovative program is conducted in collaboration with the MacArthur Foundation, UNICEF, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Youth Venture, and the International Criminal Court, among others. More information on this program can be found on the blog http://holymeatballs.org/second_life/ and on Global Kids’ website at www.GlobalKids.org.

About the International Human Rights Law Institute
The International Human Rights Law Institute (IHRLI) is at the forefront of contemporary human rights research, training, and advocacy. Since its founding in 1990, the Institute has engaged in human rights training, post-conflict justice programs, and large-scale human rights documentation projects throughout the world. IHRLI conducts scholarly research on human rights, international criminal law, and international humanitarian law. The Institute also prepares DePaul law students, activists, and scholars for careers in human rights through fellowship programs, special courses, internships, and research opportunities in Chicago and abroad.

About the International Criminal Court
The International Criminal Court is the world’s first international human rights tribunal, designed to investigate and try those accused of committing some of the worst violations of human rights, including genocide, mass rape and war crimes. The ICC, headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands since 1998, is investigating and trying crimes committed in Sudan, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Central African Republic.

The IJC is a project of Global Kids and is supported by a generous grant from the Digital Media and Learning Initiative of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The IJC is an independent initiative and does not purport to represent or imply any formal association with the International Criminal Court.

]]> [ijc] Massively Multiworld Simulcast of Kofi Annan tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.2267 2008-04-18T13:42:47Z 2008-04-18T13:47:33Z On March 20, 2008, Global Kids produced the simulcast of Kofi Annan receiving the MacArthur Foundation's first international justice award. The simulcast was broadcast not just to the Web, but to four online communities within virtual worlds, each within its... joyce www.holymeatballs.org On March 20, 2008, Global Kids produced the simulcast of Kofi Annan receiving the MacArthur Foundation's first international justice award. The simulcast was broadcast not just to the Web, but to four online communities within virtual worlds, each within its own simultaneous but unique event: Second Life, Teen Second Life, Whyville, and There.com


]]> Learn the Basics about the ICC during live video simulcast from DePaul on April 24 tag:www.holymeatballs.org,2008://1.2259 2008-04-17T19:00:00Z 2008-04-17T19:05:50Z Global Kids and the International Human Rights Law Institute invite you to "ICC101" -- a basic orientation to the International Criminal Court, where you will find answers to important questions like: What is the International Criminal Court (ICC)?What crimes... Rik http://globalkids.org IJClaunch_003
Global Kids and the International Human Rights Law Institute invite you to "ICC101" -- a basic orientation to the International Criminal Court, where you will find answers to important questions like:
  • What is the International Criminal Court (ICC)?
  • What crimes does it investigate?
  • How does the ICC relate to national and local courts?
  • What situations is the Court looking into and why?


To get answers to these questions and more, come to the Global Kids’ International Justice Center (teleport link) on Thursday April 24 from 4-6:30PM PST to get a basic introduction to the International Criminal Court from a panel of ICC experts.

WHAT: Video simulcast and Q&A from “Introduction to the ICC” event at DePaul University, Chicago, USA
WHERE: International Justice Center Amphitheater (click here to teleport)
Also viewable on the web at http://www.justicecenter.net
WHEN: Thursday, April 24, 4-6:30PM PST

SPEAKERS:

  • Caroline Ayugi, Institute for War Peace Reporting reporter, based in Gulu northern Uganda
  • Sita Balthazar, Amnesty International USA
  • Betty Bigombe, Former Minister of State and Chief Mediator in the northern Uganda conflict
  • Peter Eichstaedt, IWPR Africa editor and Author of First Kill Your Family: Uganda's Child Soldiers and the Lord's Resistance Army
  • John Washburn, Convener of the American NGO Coalition for an ICC

Global Kids, in cooperation with the International Human Rights Law Institute, will be streaming live video from this panel at DePaul University in Chicago into Second Life at the International Justice Center as well as on the web at http://www.justicecenter.net. Virtual participants will be able to ask questions to the participants.

For more information, contact Global Kids at rik@globalkids.org.

]]>