Spotlight on Digital Media And Learning

3.19.08 | This June, Thomas Lubanga, a militia leader in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, will stand trial at the International Criminal Court, accused of conscripting child soldiers into his insurgent group.  This first trial at the ICC marks an evolutionary leap in the international human rights legal system. And yet, it may pass largely unnoticed by the general public.  

The past two years have seen the emergence of several innovative efforts to use virtual worlds to bring public attention to important global issues, from the virtual Camp Darfur in Second Life to the Climate Change Center in the youth-oriented Whyville.net.  Last June, during a public forum on the role of philanthropy in virtual worlds held in Second Life, MacArthur Foundation president Jonathan Fanton asked the question, “Might there be a group in Second Life that could come together, educate itself about the criminal court and then organize a campaign to persuade the American public, and eventually our leaders, that the U.S. ought to be part of that court?”

To address that question, Global Kids on March 20 is launching in Second Life the “International Justice Center,” an education and action clearinghouse in support of the ICC. At the Center, people from all over the world will be able to learn about the court itself, engage directly with ICC officials and advocates, and take action in support of human rights and international justice.  Since 2005, with MacArthur’s support, Global Kids has leveraged the educational potential of virtual worlds to inform and involve people in pressing international and public policy issues.

To launch the Center, the ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo will appear as an avatar and give a brief public welcome address, which will be simulcast on the web, as well as in the Teen Grid of Second Life. This is just the beginning of what Global Kids hopes will be a fruitful series of experiments in using the Justice Center to host mixed-reality events, workshops, video showings and exhibits.  Not confined to the virtual world, the Center will incorporate a suite of online tools incorporating mobile phone text messaging, social networking software, video, radio and more. We invite you to visit the Center either online at http://justicecenter.net or in Second Life after March 19 at this teleport link.

To stay updated on developments and events at the International Justice Center, sign up for email updates at http://groups.google.com/group/ijc-announce or join the “International Justice Center” group within Second Life. 

Editor’s Note: For more discussion about the ICC and its increasing connections to the global internet, read MacArthur Program Officer Steven Gerber’s post from earlier this week.