Nonprofits and Second LifeThe Nonprofit Commons Project

• Mission: to create a community of practice for nonprofits to explore and learn about the world of Second Life.

• Through this community, we provide free office space, hold meetings, create a cooperative learning environment and foster outreach, education, fundraising, all in a virtual space.

How we got started

• I wandered and searched for Nonprofits and found none

• Got office donated by Lori Bell, Information Island

• Started a google group• Had a mixed reality event• Started hanging out and

soliciting volunteers• People Blogged about it • Weekly meetings• SL.com promotion • Demo at Net Squared

conference

How was it donated to us?• The Commons was generously

donated by Anshe Chung, the first person to becoming a millionaire in RL, by selling virtual goods and services. 

• Guntram Graef, Anshe's partner, attended the SLCC last year and saw my talk on NPOs and SL.

• Following the talk, he offered my the management and ownership of the Nonprofit Commons, providing we selected the groups and kept the space active. 

• We have been launched for a couple months, and the organizations are building out their own spaces (total of 32).

What is the community about?

• Meetings• Wiki• Website/community blog• NPSL tag• Management group• Directory

Who is there?

You may recognize some orgs• Alzheimer Society of Ontario• AngelAID Foundation• Boomer Esiason Foundation• Breakthrough• CARE USA• Cheerful Givers• Crohn's and Colitis Foundation• Digital Campfires Foundation• FightHunger.org• Floaters• RoSa Library• Good Samaritan Group• Horizon Health Center• Idealist.org• Information Architecture Inst.

(IAI)

• International Humanities Center• International Rescue Committee• Mariners' Museum• Medical Emerg. Relief Int'l

(Merlin)• Missouri Humanities Council• Non-Profit Global Network• Partners for Others• Preferred Family Healthcare• Techsoup• Transgender Resource Center• WESTAF• WMNF• Yehoodi.com

What are they doing?

• Holding Meetings (for ex.AA,NA,Transgender Resource ctr.)

• Awareness-building• Fundraising• Teaching/Learning new

graphics/building skills• Demonstrating the

impossible• Creating Community far

and wide w/International orgs

Goals for the NPC group

• Update Directory• Mixed Reality Event• Have regular classes• Expand the sim

residents• Get funded• Better metrics• Regular newsletter

Ways to join us

– Attend the weekly in-world meetings every Friday from 8:30am-9:30am.

– Subscribe to, read, and comment on the NPSL Blog

(http://secondlife.techsoup.org)– Subscribe toTechSoup

- Second Life Google Group – Join the TechSoup Group in

World – Volunteer – Add yourself to our directory– IM Glitteractica Cookie inworld