Category: Events

VWBPE 2017: call for volunteers; attendee registration

Posted on by Inara Pey
Image courtesy of VWBPE
Image courtesy of VWBPE

The 2017  Virtual Worlds Best Practice in Education (VWBPE) conference will be taking place between Wednesday, March 29th and Saturday April 1st, 2017 inclusive. A grass-roots community event focusing on education in immersive virtual environments, VWBPE attracts 2200-3500 educational professionals from around the world each year.

In the context of the conference, a “virtual world” is an on-line community through which users can interact with one another and use and create ideas irrespective of time and space. As such, typical examples include Second Life, OpenSimulator, Unity, World of Warcraft, Eve Online, and so on, as well as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest or any virtual environments characterised by an open social presence and in which the direction of the platform’s evolution is manifest in the community.

Image courtesy of VWBPE
Image courtesy of VWBPE

2017 is a special year for VWBPE, marking its tenth anniversary. With this in mind, the overarching them for the four days is that of Legacy. However, in order to the event to proceed smoothly, help is always required and welcomed. To this end, the organisers have put out a Call for Volunteers to help fill the numerous vacancies in the following areas:

  • Hosts (formerly known as Meet & Greet)
  • Mentors
  • Quadrivium Facilitator
  • Quadrivium Assistant
  • Technical Support
  • Volunteer Media Stream Team

For more information about each role and to sign up, please visit the VWBPE Call for Volunteers web page, which includes a sign-up form. Note that full training for volunteers will be provided, and volunteers will be contacted by a member of the VWBPE team, who will provide more information of the training and dates, schedule sign-ups, and a couple of Volunteer Committee events volunteers will be welcome to attend.

Registrations and Sponsorship Social

Also, remember that conference registrations are open, and there will be a special Sponsorship Social  – The Roaring Twenties – on Thursday, February 16th at 17:00, hosted by Rockcliffe University. If you would like to attend or find out more, please visit the VWBPE Sponsorship Social web page.

Additional Links

OBR in Second Life 2017: dancers and volunteers sought

Posted on by Inara Pey
via OBR in SL
via OBR in SL

One Billion Rising (OBR) will once again be taking place in Second Life on Tuesday, February 14th, 2017.

When launched on Valentine’s Day 2012, One Billion Rising was the biggest mass action in human history; a call to action based on the staggering statistic that 1 in 3 women on the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. With the world population at 7 billion, this adds up to more than one billion women and girls who are at risk. OBR aims to bring people together, raise greater awareness of the plight of those at risk the world over, and bring about a fundamental change in how vulnerable and defenceless women and girls are treated.

Activities in Second Life commence at 00:00 SLT on the morning of February 14th, and will continue through a full 24 hours across the OBR regions. However, before the day itself dawns, the organisers are looking for dancers and volunteers.

Dance forms a major part of OBR, with supporters taking to the streets around the world to dance to the official OBR anthem – and in Second Life, the event has always been marked by the production of a special OBR dance video. 2017 will be no exception – see the video below for 2016’s dance.

There are around 70 slots for dancers wanting to take part in this choreographed event, with filming taking pace on two days:

  • Tuesday, February 7th: 13:00 – 16:00 SLT
  • Saturday, February 11th: 09:00 – 12:00 noon SLT.

If you would like to participate, please fill-out the OBR in SL Video Registration form asap – slots will be filled on a first come, first serve basis.

If you would like to volunteer to help run the event, as Stage Manager or Greeter, please complete the OBR in SL Volunteer Registration form – the next rounds of training will take place on the weekend of the 1oth through 12 of February  – check the form for times on those dates, and see the Training Sessions booking form.

If you would like to attend the One Billion Rising in Second Life press day, and receive press releases, please complete the Information for the Press form.

You can keep up with information on the event through the OBR in SL website, and specific enquiries can be directed in-world to Samantha Ohrberg.

 

Mice, men, monsters, heroes, gods – and Wodehouse

Posted on by Inara Pey

It’s time to kick-off another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s Second Life home at Bradley University, unless otherwise indicated.

Sunday,February 5th, 11:00: Of Mice and Men – Part 3

Caledonia Skytower, Shandon Loring, Corwyn Allen, Kayden Oconnell continue a reading of John Steinbeck’s classic 1937 novella at Seanchai’s Explore the World of John Steinbeck in Kitely (grid.kitely.com:8002:EXPLORESeanchai).

The World of John Steinbeck - the Steinbeck Gallery, Kitely (grid.kitely.com:8002:EXPLORESeanchai)
The World of John Steinbeck – the Steinbeck Gallery, Kitely (grid.kitely.com:8002:EXPLORESeanchai)

From January 20th through February 5th, Tacoma Little Theatre, Tacoma Washington State, presents Of Mice and Men directed by Niclas Olson. The production is being supported by Senchai Library as a part of their Explore the Arts series, hosted on Kitely, where a special World of John Steinbeck has been created and is open to exploration by virtual world users and to members of the audience attending performances of the play at Tacoma Little Theatre, where a PC has been set up to provide access to Explore the World of John Steinbeck.

Within the virtual space, visitors can explore more of Steinbeck’s life and work, and experience the history of the times about which he wrote. If they wish, they can also visit the other Explore environments established by Seanchai in support for Tacoma Little Theatre’s production.

Monday, February 6th 19:00: Lisa and David

Gyro Muggins reads renowned psychiatrist Theodore Isaac Rubin’s book on the complex struggles of children with severe mental illness. Lisa and David are two troubled teens whose growing friendship breaks communication barriers.

Tuesday, February 7th 19:00:  A Monstrous Regiment of Women

Continues with Caledonia Skytower.

Wednesday, February 8th 19:00: The Winter of Our Wodehouse

Trolley Trollop reads selections from P.G. Wodehouse.

Thursday, February 9th 19:00:

19:00:  Monsters and Myth – The  Hydra: A Winter’s Love Story, Part 2

Shandon Loring continues reading a rich mixture of the legend of Hercules, laced with and a spin of the tale of Boreas, the purple-winged god of the north wind and his love for Oreithyia (in this tale, replaced by the goddess Iris), deceitful deities and a cunning young girl.

21:00: Seanchai Late Night

Science fiction with Finn Zeddmore.

Please check with the Seanchai Library’s blog for updates and for additions or changes to the week’s schedule.

The featured charity for January / February is Heifer International, working with communities to end world hunger and poverty and to care for the Earth.

Second Life Home and Garden Expo 2017 announced

Posted on by Inara Pey
Home and Garden Expo 2016
Home and Garden Expo 2016

The 2017 Second Life Home and Garden Expo  has been announced with the opening of registrations. The event will run from Friday, May 19th through to Sunday, June 4th 2017 inclusive.

As with past years, the Expo will span multiple regions and feature the very best in home and garden design, furnishing and decor, all to help raise money for Relay For Life of Second Life (RFL of SL).

Creators / merchants and artists interested in participating in the event can find full information on doing so via the following links:

Home and Garden Expo 2016 - the fun fair
Home and Garden Expo 2016 – the fun fair

Gacha machines will once again be a part of the event, and 50% of the proceeds from these will be paid to RFL. Machines will only be permitted within the central region for the Expo, and will be placed in a premium location there. One gacha machine is included in all exhibitor packs, and additional machines can be bought for L$500 each, also 50/50 split between merchant and RFL of SL.

Further details on the event can be obtained through the Home and Garden Expo 2017 website,  where blogger registrations will be opening in the near future. In the meantime, press enquiries can be made in-world to Kaerri Rae.

2017 Mole Day in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
The Horizons Experience (November 2016) is one of the Mole's most recent projects
The Horizons Experience (November 2016) is one of the Mole’s most recent projects

Saturday, February 4th, 2017, marks the annual Mole Day celebrations in Second Life, and all SL residents are invited to attend festivities at the Bay City Fairgrounds, North Channel.

First held in 2010, Mole Day honours the members of the Linden Department of Public Works (LDPW), affectionately known as the “moles”, who are responsible for the construction of the Mainland infrastructure in Second Life – the roads, railways, waterways, and so on.

mole-day-2017“Moles” are resident builders, scripters and others who create new content on Linden Lab’s behalf and to the benefit of all. These Residents all have Second Life accounts with the last name “Mole”, and work under the auspices of the Linden Department of Public Works (LDPW).

The Moles have been responsible for some of the larger mainland development projects, such as creating many of the more famous sights in Nautilus and wells as undertaking initial development of Zindra, the Adult continent.

More recently they have been directly involved in projects such as Horizons, the Horizons Experience and PaleoQuest. The Moles also develop Linden Homes regions on behalf of the Lab, including all of the parks and places to discover within them.

However, their very first project was developing Bay City itself – hence the City’s annual celebration honouring them.

The celebrations will kick-off a 11:00 SLT, with Oblee (Obeloinkment Wrigglesworth) and Gospeed Racer of KONA radio providing the entertainment., and as well as the music and fun, attendees can grab landmarks for all of the major public builds by the Moles, and also to their home region, Meauxle Bureaux, which you can also read about here.

About Bay City and the Bay City Alliance

Bay City is a mainland community, developed by Linden Lab® and home to the Bay City Alliance. The Bay City Alliance was founded in 2008 to promote the Bay City regions of Second Life and provide a venue for Bay City Residents and other interested parties to socialize and network. It is now the largest group for Residents of Bay City.

Related Links

Sign-up for the Castle, Home and Garden Contest in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Poster courtesy of CHG.org
Poster courtesy of CHG.org

The fourth annual Castle, Home and Garden contest will take place in Second Life from June 3rd through June 24th inclusive, in aid of Relay for Life of Second Life. Registrations are open for both contestants and merchants – but spaces are filling up!

Using the building tools provided within Second Life, RFL Teams and individuals are invited to build a one-of-a-kind original build castle or home, with or without an associated garden, or design a garden setting, in one of 14 themed regions. The completed builds are then opened to the public to explore, and are voted upon by a both a panel of judges and the public at large.

Winning entries as decided by the judging panel can with up to L$200,000 (castle) or $100,000 (Home or Garden design), and L$100,000 for the popular vote competition, with all prizes being paid into the winning RFL Team’s RFL kiosk (and thus to RFL of SL) or to a general RFL kiosk in the case of individual entries. In addition, all of the houses and castles included in the event are then offered up for auction to the highest bidder, with all proceeds from the auction also going to RFL of SL.

Note that is order to be auctioned, all home / castle builds must be transferable. Also note that entrants will be required to run at least one event at their build when the regions are open to the public.

The 14 themed regions for the contest are:  Atlantis, the Sunken City; Beauty and the Beast; Bedrock (Flintstones-style theme);  Bikini Bottom (Spongebob Squarepants inspired); Christmas Town; Game of Thrones: King’s Landing; Game of Thrones: Winterfell; Halloween Town; Harry Potter: Hogsmead; Lord of the Rings: Rivendell; Labyrinth; Springfield (Simpsons inspired); Star Wars: The Death Star; 1984.

Rviendell from The Hobbit / The Lord of the Rings is one of the 14 themed regions in the Castle, Home and Garden Contest. Image: WingNutz Films / New line Cinema.
Rviendell from The Hobbit / The Lord of the Rings is one of the 14 themed regions in the Castle, Home and Garden Contest. Image: WingNutz Films / New Line Cinema.

Those wishing to sign up should refer to the Castle Home and Garden Contestants Sign-up Form for all requirements and rules of entry.

In addition, there is a region – It’s A Small World – dedicated to merchants and vendors, as well as merchant locations throughout the 14 theme regions. Shops are available for free, but merchants can also opt for one of a number of sponsorship packages, which offer both more space and additional benefits.

Full details on the Merchant requirements and sign-up information can be found on the Merchants Sign-up Form, and a full breakdown of the sponsorship packages can be found on the Sponsorship Levels Google document.

Finally, the Castle Home and Garden team are seeking help and volunteers. If you would like to assist in running the event, please check the description of roles available on the Volunteer Sign-up Form and – sign up!

You can keep up-to-date with the event, including information on events, entertainment, etc (as the latter are arranged in time),  through both the official website and the official blog.