innovative Social impact 20 Projects = $100,000

NetSquared a group that helps social benefit organizations to responsibly adopt emerging web tools is distributing cash awards (totaling at least $100,000) and other resources to 20 deserving projects at their 2007 Conference.

The 20 winning projects are being chosen by online vote. You`ll need a NetSquared Account and some time to browse the proposals before you can vote. You`ll need to vote for at least 5 projects (but no more than 10), out of more than 150 projects, so do take a look through all of the proposals.

Here are ten projects that have caught my eye and attention in random order:

Village the Game: Play the World of Social Enterprisehttp://www.villagethegame.comVillage is an online world and strategy game designed to get peopleaddicted to third world development. Form a team, build sustainableenterprises that eradicate poverty, and discover the power you have totransform the real world.

Walden III: Digital Utopianism and the Virtual Worldhttp://www.iml.usc.eduAn academic experiment that would explore whether Virtual Worlds, suchas Second Life, can better facilitate the exchange of cultural artifactsacross borders more harmoniously and equitably than the real world.

Games for Changehttp://www.gamesforchange.orgDubbed an early “Sundance of Video Games”, G4C is an exciting new activistmovement and supporting non-profit dedicated to using games forpositive social change.

The World Cafי GiGis (Girl Geeks) Projecthttp://www.theworldcafe.comThe GiGi’s project applies understanding of social networks, communitydevelopment, and online technologies, to enable the World Cafי globalnetwork to become increasingly self-organizing, self-sustaining on behalf oflife affirming futures.

SFZERO.ORG http://www.sf0.orgSFZero is a free game and online social network that challenges players tocomplete social, cultural and artistic projects. Our goal is to develop asystem that allows anyone to use our model to create powerful, sociallyrelevant games.

My MoSoSo http://www.MyMoSoSo.comMy MoSoSo is a free wireless software application that helps people meetvirtually and then collaborate in real life to achieve mutual orcomplementary goals. My MoSoSo users enjoy a sense of community that isunprecedented in human history.

ManorMeta http://www.amoration.orgThe living learning lab Manoris a visionary multimedia series sharingproblem solving adventures, diverse young leaders, musical stars and AIcharacters in an amazing mashup for web, virtual worlds, television, film,comics and print media.

Kabissa 2.0: Strengthening Social Web in Africahttp://www.kabissa.orgMarries power of Web 2.0 with passion of 900+ African organizations. SavvyWeb 2.0 Ambassadors will collaborate through the Kabissa site and face toface to develop and promote homegrown strategies for employing Web 2.0for social change.

Globaloria: Empowering Youth Worldwide to Create and Collaborate Online http://www.myglife.orgThe Globaloria Program uses virtual and scalable edu-social networks –comprised of programmable websites and related Wikis and Blogs – toteach young people from underserved communities how to take control oftheir new-media world.

International Networks of Victims of Terrorism and War http://www.peacefultommorow.orgThe International Network of Victims of Terrorism and War seeks to unitevictims of political violence, war and terrorism to amplify the voices ofvictims speaking out for nonviolence and to create grassroots structures which support a culture of peace and common security.

Cybernet games are a very serious business@ISOC-IL2007

Last week I’ve been asked what DiGRA all about. Well, we  had a Great panel Introducing the Digital Games Research Association and much more. Starting with the videogames ethnography challenge and ending with the Far-East Cyber games cultural revolution. The house was full and all first seats in the second-life and cyber games special panel were taken!

This was our line-up Online Games are a Serious Matter    

For more DiGRA ISRAEL events and info join our mailing list

Is Google Earth The Next killing app for Serious Games…and beyond?

Billy Pidgeon, IDC’s Consumer Markets Gaming Program Manager, Ron Yachini, Partner, Genesis Partners, Amit Or, Managing Director, In live, Offir Remez, President and Founder of Lucid, and interesting panels chaired by Gilad Nass, Research Director – Emerging Technologies, IDC on the Future Technologies of Gaming and Service Providers issues, meeting my talanted students from the Instructional Sys Technologies at H.I.T, informal meetings with great guys, Dell`s gaming room… all contributed to the IDC Gaming event success, held on 5th of February in Tel-Aviv, attended by more than 195 people, ranging from games developers, service providers, academic scholars, researchers and the media press.The Scoop of the day came from Guy Arama from Microsoft, stating that the X-BOX 360 is coming to ISRAEL this year. Great News for all u gamers

I found Billy Pidgeon`s presentation very informative and interesting. Ron Yachini shared is his imagination and vision regarding the biz of games development. From Offir Remez I`ve learned that vision science, Computer science and math are great stuff, in the persuing the visionary goal of bringing the Hollywood tech to my living room. Amit Or show us that TV as we know it today, would be changed dramatically, BIG TIME

my presentation which focused on Serious Games can be summerized   Small Change can make Big Difference

I`ve shown several future gmaing trends by analyzing the Serious Games development over the last years. For demonstrating the difference between simulation and games I”ve showed many games developed on the Google Earth platform. Do not forget Google-Moon and Google Mars.

You can mark my words
Google Earth might be one of the next leading killing apps for Serious Games and beyond

 for more DiGRA ISRAEL events join our mailing list
http://mail.digra.org/mailman/listinfo/israel

Coming-up  ISOC-IL Cyber-net games Session

GarageGeeks hacking the Wii

IDC Gaming Event

 AGENDA

February 05, 2007
08:00	Registration and Morning Gathering
09:00	Welcome Words Gideon Lopez, Managing Director, Israel, IDC Israel
09:05	Keynote Presentation: The Worldwide Gaming Industry Directions Billy Pidgeon, Program Manager, Consumer Markets: Gaming, IDC US (MS)
09:45	The Business of Fun – Opportunities in Gaming Ron Yachini, Genesis Partners
10:10	The Future Technologies of Gaming – The Big Picture Ronnie Dan, Product Marketing Manager – Consumer Applications, NDS Technologies Israel Ltd. Guy Ohry-Arama, Consumer Group Manager, Microsoft Israel Billy Pidgeon, Program Manager, Consumer Markets: Gaming, IDC US (MS) Ron Yachini, Genesis Partners Panel is moderated by Gilad Nass, Research Director – Emerging Technologies, IDC
10:50	Coffee Break and Dell Game Room Activity
11:20	Graphics Hardware: The Real Challenge Offir Remez, Founder and President, Lucid
11:35	Serious Games – Opportunities and Challenges Beyond the Private Consumer Markets Dr. Hanan Gazit, DiGRA Israel Chapter, a researcher and a lecturer at the Instructional Systems Technologies Department , H.I.T – Holon Institute of Technology. , DiGRA Israel Chapter
12:00	Join the Quadplay – Mass participation Games for Converged TV Amit Or, CEO and Co-Founder, InLive
12:20	The Service Providers Talk: What Do We Need? Jonathan Kogan, Head of Mobile Gaming, Partner Communications Co. Ltd Meni Michaeli, Business Development and Interactive Manager, Reshet Yoav Tzruya, COO, Exent Technologies Ltd. Semi Vahap, Business Development and Product Manager, Netvision Ltd. Panel is moderated by Gilad Nass, Research Director – Emerging Technologies, IDC
13:00	Lunch

m-ICTE 2006 Snapshots

Click here to view some of the intersting people I’ve meet at the m-ICTE 2006, Seville, Spain.

8 BIT Movie premier @ MoMA!

While exploring the gaming experience territory flying around its boundaries, bearing the bored gamer video clip in mind I’ve traveled across the
Atlantic to the Big Apple. Imagine Flying back in time. In year 1996 while walking 53 Street, towards the famous MoMA - The Museum of Modern Art, you hear someone saying: “I know for a fact that ten years from now, MoMA is going to host the premier of a movie dedicated to videogames”. Guess you would have a kind of “give me a break…forget about it” smirk smile…Well, think again cause its Showtime folks for Marcin Ramocki’s 8 BIT Movie premier ! 
A week later, October 19, several blocks in upper
Manhattan, is our second spot. The MacArthur Foundation announced plans to help build the emerging field of digital media and learning, committing $50 million over five years to the effort.  The fund research and innovative projects focus is on understanding the impact of the widespread use of digital media on our youth and how they learn.  The event was simulcast on both the main grid and the teen grid in Second Life. The connection between Marcin’s 8 BIT Movie and the MacArthur spotlight press conference is straight forward. Both have the same underling intriguing question.
Marcin’s [seen here standing in the spotlights at  MoMA] 8 BIT Movie deals with the serious “measuring the impact” question in a thoughtful way, while keep things cool and fun to watch. Don’t miss the “Modding Mario’s”  episode!-) 8 BIT Produced and Co-Directed by Justin Strawhand, presents artists like Cory Arcangel, BIT SHIFTER, Bodenstandig 2000, Bubblyfish, Covox, Mary Flanagan, and others New Media artists.  8 BIT is a “rockumentary,” art exposé, and culture-critical investigation, looking back at the 1980s demo scene, chip-tune music, and artists using “machinima” and modified computer games. Produced in New York City, Los Angeles, Paris, and
Tokyo, the documentary brings a global perspective to the new artistic approaches of the DIY generation that grew up playing Atari, Commodore 64, and other video game consoles. Source: http://www.8bitmovie.com/ 
One reflective thought is worth sharing: “between boredom and creative Circuit Bending there’s a vast ocean waiting to be explored.”