Running from September 2nd through to September 17th (inclusive) in Second Life is the 2023 edition of the Spoonful of Sugar festival in support of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the globe-spanning non-profit organisation providing medical humanitarian organisation delivering emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, natural disasters and similar, and who might otherwise be excluded from receiving much-needed healthcare and relief.
Also known as Doctors Without Borders, MSF was originally founded in Paris, France in 1971 and is entirely self-governing; the support and treatment it provides is given on the basis of need, irrespective of race, religion, gender or political affiliation. It is often one of the first organisations to have feet on the ground wherever and whenever humanitarian aid and medical support is desperately needed, and since its founding, MSF has grown to a movement of 24 associations, bound together as MSF International, now based within Switzerland. Thousands of health professionals, logistical and administrative staff – most of whom are hired locally in respect of the care they give around the world – work on programmes in some 70 countries worldwide to provide medical and social care & support for a staggering 10+ million people annually.
The 2023 Spoonful of Sugar event marks the ninth year the event has sought to support the work of MSF. In that time, more than US $100,000 has been raised, once again demonstrating the generosity of Second Life users in supporting those most in need around the world. The money raised through SOS events goes directly to MSF for disbursement, although since 2022, the SOS organisers has sought to work with MSF to ensure the funds raised are directed more towards providing relief in countries and regions which have been impacted by natural / environmental disasters, as the SOS website notes.
We don’t “earmark” our fundraising for a specific aspect of what they do. We think they know best where the money is most needed. We do, however, want to change our focus for the event a bit. We’re going to explore more about MSF/Doctors Without Borders work with environmental issues, natural disasters and the pressing impact of climate change, focusing on their work within these specific areas and the people they help while doing this work. So join us at places on our planet that are both astoundingly beautiful and wealthy and yet devastatingly vulnerable and poor. Let’s understand this connection between environmental imbalance and the illness, safety and resource insecurity, facing so many on our planet,
– From the Spoonful of Sugar website
Hence why the 2023 follows the same theme as 2022 – Tahiti, which both sits as a reflection of the scenes of tropical beauty that names tends to conjure whilst also reminding us that it is often smaller, poorer countries that suffer the most from ecological disasters – flooding, storms, etc., – simply because they often cannot afford the rapid response infrastructure and mechanisms required to meet such disasters.
Also as with 2022, this year’s event presents 10 regions available for exploration, entertainment and shopping. Details of the daily entertainment can be found on the SOS website’s schedule page, whilst the region list page provides a list of participating merchants and brands across the 7 shopping regions, complete with SLurl to teleport directly to each region from that page. In addition to the entertainment and shopping, the event includes the Get Crabby Hunt with an impressive selection of prizes (participation requires joining the Get Crabby Hunt Group for L$299 – all proceeds to SOS / MSF), together with the SOS Raffle, offering the chance to win gift cards valued up to L$10,000 and / or tropical cabins.
The landing point for the event follows the familiar SOS format of providing extensive information on MSF’s work, as well as introducing people to the teleport system which can be used for easier region hopping. However, for those who wish to explore the regions on foot, boardwalks and sandy causeways can be followed through the event regions to help avoid getting feet too wet!
As always, Spoonful of Sugar is an event well worth the time taken to visit. Event if you don’t find anything to buy in the shopping regions, the donation kiosks will welcome your Linden dollars, and you can be absolutely sure that your money is going to a very worth cause.
SLurl and Links
- Spoonful of Sugar Main Landing Point (Spoonful of Sugar, rated: Moderate)
- Spoonful of Sugar website
- Spoonful of Sugar articles in this blog
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 