26 posts tagged “inkenzo”

Is it possible to be efficient as both a local and global creator?  Virtual vocations create an opportunity for international collaboration that is unparalleled -- have we learned to work efficiently together across boundaries?  

International Architecture

International Architecture

International Architecture

International Architecture

In Kenzo, Common Cure, Rhiannon Chatnoir and many Second Life luminaries are joining forces at the Web 2.0 Expo in NYC to launch the new Amoration.net and celebrate our partnership with the Vesuvius Group.  We're having a great time sharing virtual worlds and the future of interactive media with the traditional web communities.  While we meet quite a few people who are familiar with SL, there are very few people in the traditional web world who are thinking about the 3D web and the future of our integrated communications.  This is a great time to be an avatar worldchanger!

Imagine rebuilding the real world from the ground up, prim by prim.  What would you change and how would you create public good?

Five finalist projects are realizing their revisions with the Second Life and the Public Good Community Challenge.  Now through June 30th you can vote for your top three of these five amazing endeavors to be awarded a total of almost one million Linden dollars! 

On July 1st at 4PM the University of Southern California's Network Culture Project will award the top three with L$100,000 a month for three months to build their dream of public good from the virtual world.  Avatars can take a minute right now to determine who will win the big awards to be given out at the International Island amphitheater on Monday afternoon.

The projects currently up for awards:

Texas Obesity Research Center
Native Lands Cultural Outreach
Mauerkrankheit/Wallsickness
Interactive Accessible Home
Ability Commons

Any avatar can vote for their top three projects and offer resources to these endeavors; volunteer to help them build out a new community or reach out and partner with these projects to grow real world impact from Second Life.  Voting ends June 30th so send in your feedback today and visit these projects on the web or on International Island to explore new ways to rebuild the real world through virtual efforts.

This community challenge is part of ongoing philanthropic research by the USC Network Culture Project at the Annenberg School for Communication based in Los Angeles, provided with support from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, cosponsors of the State of Play conference where awardees will present their new work in October 2008. 

Thank you for participating through your votes and feedback and by helping us build vibrant communities in virtual spaces.

For more information contact Resident Annenberg inworld or email networkculture@gmail.com. 

XKCD
Originally uploaded by .inKenzo. evonne@amo

For the last two months I have been testing many different worldbuilding platforms on my Mac, XO laptop and now on my returned PC laptop. A full writeup on the various platforms for kids and adults (from my 7 year old test associate) will be made available soon with a follow-up after September's Virtual Worlds Expo and SLCC. For now, here's a little reading to get you started on thinking about hundreds of worlds within worlds....

Association of Virtual Worlds publishes Blue Book, as Tateru Nino at Massively reports: http://www.massively.com/2008/04/27/association-of-virtual-worlds-publishes-blue-book/

Caleb Booker, aka Onder Skall: http://slgames.wordpress.com/2007/03/05/alternatives-to-second-life/

Sylvie Noel: http://www.sylvienoel.ca/blog/?p=421
Asks a great question: "Where is the customization in work-based virtual worlds?"

Network Culture Challenge

My friend the Gorilla seated behind me (aka Beyers Sellers from Metanomics and Cornell) knows a thing or two about customization...so does Howard Rheingold seated next to me here, author of SmartMobs and all-around brilliant creator. Howard's on our panel to determine which challenge proposals will move on to the community vote and winners will receive grants of L$100,000 a month for three months to build out their SL vision. More to come as we share details on the USC Network Culture Community Challenge for the Second Life avatars making real world change happen. We will be hosting two more community conversations next week: May 12th at 9PM PST (morning of May 13th for my friends in Asia/Australia) and May 15th at noon at the same theatre on International Island in SL.

Network Culture Challenge

Thanks to everyone who came out for our May 6th event on International Island in SL!  Most of all, thanks for playing....we wouldn't have philanthropy in virtual worlds if we didn't have millions of people looking to create somewhere new.

lucent at the do lab, coachella...scorch approved!

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From Elven Awakening, on fairies and elves:

The fairies at the time were what we consider to be the givers of all of Mother Earth or whatever planet system they were on. They were the givers of life, which meant really that the fairies went around, the fairy world went around and touched the flowers to give them life.

Megapoofer!

And in truth now -- I am not making anything but out of the truth -- every time they came across a flower and the flower was straining itself -- you know, how little roses sometimes they reach up to the Father Sky and the sunshine, and they reach up and they want to stand so tall and be so beautiful. They would sometimes cry, it would look like dew upon their leaves, and the fairy world would rush out in through the flowers, and they would discover a little flower that was weeping, and they would touch it with their own light, and they would give it new color and a new experience, and they would reach even higher, and they would remember.

luna, intern of the month

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For today's address before the UN Climate Change Conference the congressman from Massachusetts chose to appear in Second Life rather than fly to Bali and address the crowd directly.  His talk on climate change and the metaverse of possibilities echoes the policy reflected at globalwarming.house.gov

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Rep. Markey, head of the House's committee on climate change, fielded questions on education, conservation and the "use" of Nature.....should we consider nature something to be used until those resources no longer exist?  Do we have a role in preserving land, planting new forests, considering the greening of our cities?

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"The technology is moving so fast that this really is just the beginning."  Daniel Nelson from OneWorld UK noted.  Daniel is also featured at the end of this In Kenzo machinima video attached from today's interactive town hall meeting with Rep. Markey at OneWorld Meetings Island in Second Life.

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We've come a long way in a few months!  The next major AMO event is happening this Sunday December 16th from 11-2PM at AMO Island in Second Life, a dance party to benefit Great Strides with DJ Nexeus Fatale.  Bring out your horses and help us raise money for equine therapy.  Every boogie counts.

GIVING CIRCLE
The ONE LAPTOP PER CHILD GIVE XO CHALLENGE ends soon.  Do you have someone with small hands who would love the XO laptop's ease and portability?  Give one get one, a great opportunity to share goodwill.

At AMO we've seen the potential for empowering young talent to do more with their digital skills.  In the last two years our interns have gone on to great work with professional companies and nonprofit organizations...all for scripting or designing items in Second Life!  Those who still wonder about the power of the virtual world for education should visit Holy Meatballs, New Media Consortium and the SLEDucators who are teaching and taking on exciting new research endeavors in the wild petri dish of the metaverse.

LAND TO LEASE/OWN!
We have mainland for sale along with office/research area plots both land and sky on AMO.  Talk to me directly if you are looking for space in the coming weeks.  Short term and long term opportunities available.

AMO is all about experimentation.  This month we collaborated with the Car Lovers to host The Ridebuilders Challenge on KULA last Friday.  I get the privilege of announcing the winners for the sweetest rides in Second Life! We awarded over L$50,000 to the following artists for their extraordinary work

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winning entries displayed

To make a gift for AMO visit our giving circle page at Amoration/International Humanities Center.  Your donations support our virtual internship programs along with providing the AMO Island space for groups to develop new works in the metaverse.  Thank you for supporting new media bridgebuilding experiments!

Bridgebuilding and Rebuilding
For the last few weeks we have been coordinating with friends at Madre Grande, a monastery and retreat farm near San Diego and the Mexican border town of Tecate.  During the Harris fire around Halloween they lost most of their residences, archives and gathering spaces; seven monks are now living in one building together as they work out a long term rebuilding plan in the midst of codes, permits and inspections, cleanup and fire debris removal.  One of the monks was an interactive designer for the Cartoon Network, another a financial officer in London; this bright young ecumenical group of leaders has appreciated the support of the AMO community along with your gifts dedicated to this rebuilding effort.  We were glad to go to Madre Grande with Burners without Borders last week and we will blog in more detail with photos soon.  Thanks to Marta Collier, Brent Heyning and Rob Darman for their wizardry with pipes and electrical tech!

The leaders in AMO never cease to amaze me.  Thank you all for getting out there and doing what you love to do most.  Come visit us soon in meatspace, metaspace or any space!

In AMO,
In Kenzo