Off of the Association of Internet Researchers Listserv this morning, I saw this job opening for a project manager of the "Public Diplomacy and Virtual Worlds Project" at USC’s Center on Public Diplomacy. USC has been involved in lots of interesting stuff from the iCommons summit next week to some "serious games" initiatives. So sounds…
Summer Swingin in the City
The summertime is the perfect time for a lindy hopper in the city. There’s a slew of free or cheap swing-related events going on nearly every weekend. The season kicks off with Michael Arenella and his Dream Orchestra playing on the beautiful Governor’s Island this Saturday. Emphasizing roaring 20s and 30s music, they are perfect…
Learning from failure: NGOevents.org
A couple of years ago, while working for another non-profit at the United Nations, I proposed the creation of a community-based, multi-issue civil society calendar of events at the UN. This evolved into the website NGOevents.org. As of today, the domain name NGOevents.org has officially expired, marking the end of a mostly failed effort to…
Amnesty Intl webcast on Internet Repression today!
Amnesty International is broadcasting on the web today a global event entitled "Some People Think the Internet is a Bad Thing," as part of their Irrepressible Campaign. Scheduled to begin at 6:30PM UK time / 1:30PM EST, the webcast will bring together both experts and victims of cyber-repression including: Martha Lane Fox of lastminute.com, Clark…
Yehoodi HQ in Second Life, beta 1.02
So over the past couple of months, I’ve been slowly building up Yehoodi’s in-world presence in Second Life, experimenting with our new headquarters in the Plush Non-profit sim (teleport SLURL.) It’s been a good learning experience for us, helping us strategize about our longer term goals in SL. Here’s a brief tour of what we’ve…
Avatars fly to end multiple sclerosis this Sunday!
Just a reminder that the National MS (Multiple Sclerosis) Society is partnering with Scion and MovieTickets.com on a cool-sounding fundraiser to support the millions who suffer from the debilitating disease of MS. Scheduled from June 10-17, the "MS FLY" is the virtual equivalent of the annual "MS WALK" that takes place all around the United…
DJ Doubledown Tandino goes virtual full-time
I got a message from my pal DJ Doubledown Tandino announcing that he’s going completely "metarati" as SnoopyBrown Zamboni would say. That is, Doubledown is quiting his day job and pursuing his Second Life work full-time. He’s a very gifted DJ, in whatever world you happen to be inhabiting, spinning everything from swing jazz to…
Catalonian virtual cooking? WTF?
Ok, I love Catalan cuisine and I love virtual worlds. But I can’t for the life of me figure out why I would go to a virtual world to learn how to cook a Catalonian dish. I received a press release telling me that Manuel Diez, head chef of L’Arrel del Born in Barcelona, will…
“Virtual Activism” mixed-reality event next Monday at Games for Change
I’m spreading the news that the 4th annual Games for Change conference happening next Monday and Tuesday (June 11-12) will feature a mixed-reality panel on "virtual activism" at 10:30AM EST. Games for Change brings together game developers, industry experts, academics and non-profits to discuss how to use digital games to promote social change. The "virtual…
Happy birthday, Ms. Dawn Hampton!
Last night we celebrated the 79th birthday of my friend Ms. Dawn Hampton. For most of Dawn’s life, she has been a musician and a singer, playing saxophone and singing with the Hampton family band, and later the Hampton Sisters. But I’ve known Dawn primarily as a lindy hop dancer. She’s a regular at our…