NPSL: Nonprofits in Second Life

On August 13, at 5PM PST, come to the International Justice Center to catch real world / virtual DJ Doubledown Tandino spinning an eclectic mix of global grooves for your dancing pleasure. During the dance, we'll also be asking for donations to aid victims of human rights abuses in Darfur, the Congo, Uganda, and Central African Republic. Afterwards, Mr. John Washburn, convenor of the American NGO Coalition on the International Criminal Court, will talk about why the next US President should support the International Criminal Court. Come dance, support human rights, and learn about the ICC.
Donations received will be forward to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the ICC Victims Trust Fund.

Click here to RSVP.

Come party and get some great deals!

Great Strides Charity Auction

When? Sat 9 Aug - 11:00 AM SL Time for 3 hours (No Cover Charge)

Come bid on a yacht (from Trudeau), a tour of the Elven lands, horses (AKK Stables and more), artwork (from Annah DeCuir, Ronnie Rhode and more), jewelry, buildings (from Oldrome Yer and others), and much more! All proceeds will benefit Great Strides, a RL charity.

Great Strides mission is to promote emotional healing and growth in partnership with horses. Learn more at: http://www.GreatStrides.org.

For the fourth consecutive year running, the American Cancer Society held their annual Relay for Life Second Life. 2008 was the most successful year yet for this virtual relay to raise funds to fight cancer.

What do you get when you have 65 NPO's, Live entertainment, dancing, and a whole bunch of people in the main square at NPC Aloft?
The answer..... an awesome Nonprofit Commons Awareness night!

SL singer Vienna James put on an amazing performance, helped promote our NPO's and toured the sim after her performance.

As you may have noticed, there has been a little event calendar on the site for the last few weeks. We've been ironing out some issues and there are still other elements that we may add in the future, but it is ready for folks to start making use of.

Host: Johnson Center for Philanthropy at Grand Valley State University
Facilitator: 2020Vision Obviate
Attendees: Windy Schor, Fayandria Foley, Petro Bellic, Stingray9798 Raymaker, Jarhead Euler, Patt Bravin, , Sue Bazar, Reece Llewellyn, Glitteractica Cookie, Penguin Kuhn, Muse Carmona, Rez Messing, Coughran Mayo
Date: July 28, 2008

Synopsis:

Today I attended the Avatar on Duty session at the Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership office on Aloft Nonprofit Commons. 2020Vision (Ashima Saigal) moderated the session and she was joined by several other Johnson Center staff, along with a sizeable crowd of interested avatars. We were all there to discuss a key question for those involved with working with nonprofits in Second Life: How can nonprofits find long-term sustainability in Second Life and better translate into real-world action towards achieving their missions?

The session gave us opportunity to brainstorm and discuss this topic in an open forum. One of the first issues we discussed was what nonprofits hoped to gain by having a presence in Second Life. Many avatars saw Second Life as a way to engage a wider audience and bring awareness of their organization's work. Others mentioned the benefit of having a common meeting space and a way to network and collaborate with other nonprofits doing similar work, as well as connecting with organizations they might never have had the opportunity to meet. Jarhead Euler of Uptown Shelter gave the example of how his organization only heard about Community Voicemail through Second Life and now is meeting with several other organizations to discuss implementing this tool for their real-life work.

Wondering about how your nonprofit's work in the virtual world can make real-world impact? Then be sure to check out the regular Avatar on Duty Sessions at the Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership office on Aloft Nonprofit Commons.

The next session, Mon. July 28th, at 10 AM PDT/SLT will focus in particular on how nonprofits can find long-term sustainability in Second Life and how to better translate this into real-world action towards achieving their missions. Join in the conversation with philanthropic advisers and community builders in Second Life.

Please send a message (IM) to 2020Vision Obviate (Real Name - Ashima Saigal) or email her at saigalas@gvsu.edu if you have any questions. Come ask your questions and they will do their best to help you to grow your organization's mission.

You can teleport directly to come join the session.

On Monday, July 21, at 12PM SLT, the GK International Justice Center will be streaming a conversation on the situation in Darfur with Dr. Francis Deng, the UN Secretary Generals’ Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide. Dr. Deng is a Sudanese national and has served as a human rights officer at the United Nations since the 1960s as well as his own country as Minister of Foreign Affairs and ambassador to several countries.

After Dr. Deng's short speech, Global Kids will facilitate a Q&A with a group of Global Kids teens present with the advisor, teens on the teen grid, and adults in the Justice Center.

Please go here to RSVP.

Avatars representing survivors, caregivers, their families and the millions of passionate supporters engaged in fighting cancer worldwide will take center stage virtually, July 19-20, when the American Cancer Society conducts its fourth annual Relay For Life® event in the Second Life virtual world. The 2008 Relay in Second Life will celebrate the “heroes” who epitomize the Society’s global mission and who represent this summer’s virtual world event theme.