Images from the Virtual Praxis conference organized by
Chilbo Connect! member Ellie Brewster.

File in the “better late than never” category:

Friend, colleague and fellow Chilbo Connect! community member Sharon Collingwood (SL: Ellie Brewster) wrote an article in the Winter 2009 edition of  On the Issues: The Progressive Woman’s Magazine discussing the Virtual Praxis conference she founded in 2008.

The article discusses how the platform has become an empowering tool for women, and how the concept of community plays out virtually.

Community was at the heart of the presentations given at the Virtual Praxis conference (archived here). For the most part, speakers either explained how their own community has grown within Second Life, or they studied communities that interested them.

The article goes on to describe some of the presentations given at the conference, including Fleep Tuque’s presentation about The Women of Chilbo.

Linda Rogers (known in Second Life as Kate Miranda) and Chris Collins (Second Life: Fleep Tuque) are founding members of two prominent Second Life communities, Cedar / Sea Turtle Island, and Chilbo,respectively. As Executive Director of the Toronto Philharmonia, Rogers was able to rely on her real-world organization for contacts in developing a series of live music events in Second Life. Collins, an IT analyst at the University of Cincinnati, relied on her own community, a loose association of online friends who moved from posted chat to virtual interaction and established Chilbo as an important cultural center for artists, architects, musicians, educators and others to gather.

The conference was a great examination of how virtual worlds like Second Life can provide additional tools to feminists and activists for many issues:

There are many possibilities for feminist organizing in this new virtual world, but there are also difficulties. The technology is developing very quickly, but there can still be frustrating systemic problems. Although use ofSecond Life is free, it does require a recent computer and a fast Internet connection. Some problems of accessibility and disability exist. However, organization at a grassroots level is growing and these small communities are now reaching out to each other to negotiate a larger social framework.

As in the early days of the women’s movement, this negotiation is taking place outside institutional control, and it is based on trust and cooperation. It is too early to make predictions on where this social framework will lead the citizens of Second Life, but the inherently egalitarian nature of this new technology could provide fertile ground for feminist activism.

Be sure to check out the full article and congrats to Ellie!

Historical perspective.. think how much has changed since this presentation was given – though the Women of Chilbo are still a driving force in our community, that hasn’t changed at all!

Chilbo residents at the Hanja Welcome Area

On October 24th, Chilbo residents met to discuss the Linden Lab Community Partnership and our intention to submit a proposal. Fleep presented a first draft document that incorporated nearly all of the initial suggestions and brainstorm results from the previous meetings. It should be noted that this document was merely a first draft and that it did not/does not reflect the views or consensus of the Chilbo Community.  Indeed, there were  strenuous objections to some sections of the document.   Nevertheless, in an effort to be transparent about our process, we post the original unedited first draft for archival purposes.

Current Status: Based on our discussion at the meeting on the 24th, a second draft version of the document is in the process of being created.  The second draft is available for revision, commenting, and editing by members of the Chilbo Community.  Members of the public and other Second Life residents are also invited to watch our progress there and submit comments or feedback as a reply to this post.

Fleep intends to set up a special kiosk in the Chilbo Town Hall with transcripts of our previous meetings and the relevant web links later today, and will send out a group notice in world when it’s set up and ready.  (Apologies for the delay, I’m in the process of helping my mom move today!)