In April 2006, Alliance Library System, a regional library system in central Illinois, started a library in the 3-dimentional virtual world of Second Life to gain experiential knowledge about providing library services in a virtual world.  One year later,  the library is flourishing, growing, attracting new volunteers and patrons from around the world, forging new partnerships within the virtual world, and providing programs, services, and materials to a group of people who might not otherwise use real world libraries.   Virtual world libraries are true libraries of the future.  We have been very excited by the synergy, the international collaboration, creativity, and energy of our volunteers and the wonderful things they have accomplished.

What is Second Life? 

Since opening to the public in 2003, Second Life has grown explosively, and today is inhabited by approxijmately 5 million people from around the globe.  New participants discover a vast digital continent and hundreds of islands and archipelagos, teeming with people, entertainment, and opportunities.  After exploring, individuals might decide to buy land, purchase a home, or start a business.  They will also be surrounded by the creations of fellow residents.  Because residents retain the rights to their digital creations, they can buy, sell, and trade with other residents.   Second Life even has its own currency—Linden Dollars—which can be converted to U.S. Dollars and other real-world currencies.  Everything you can imagine (and some you cannot) can be found in Second Life.  There are museums, 19th century worlds where residents dress in period clothing and live in Victorian homes, immersive learning environments such as an Egyptian tomb, Star Trek futuristic realms, a replica of the French Quarter in New Orleans, and much more.  Residents can go to the virtual library and use a number of resources.

Since April 2006, the Info Island Archipelago has grown from one island to ten.islands plus ten collaborating agency islands..   Alliance/Info Island staff have forged partnerships not only with other libraries but with other educational institutions, non-profit organizations such as Tech Soup which is located on Info Island, the Girls Club of New York, the National Library of Medicine, and others.  In the first year of existence, we have provided information/reference services, author visits, art shows, live music performances, and other events.  These programs have been well attended, some attracting as many as 80 people in Second Life.

We are now working on immersive learning environments like Renaissance Island which will have the look, feel, activities, and characters of the Elizabethan era in England.  This will give teachers, students, and Second Life residents  the opportunity to experience what life was like during this period.  We are building a village with homes and shops authentic to the time period, and replicas of buildings such as the Globe Theater, Greenwich Castle and others.  We have an active enthusiastic group who will play the characters of the time:  Queen Elizabeth, William Cecil, William Shakespeare and others.  Second Life residents will have the opportunity to talk to these historical figures, attend plays and events of the period, visit shops, or even rent a cottage to live there.

We think immersive environments such as this will engage learners and will supplement the classroom environment.  Participants can role play, participate or simply observe.  In these kind of atmospheres, they are not only learning but are experiencing the period.  Through the creation of Renaissance Island, we hope to develop a a place that will provide engaged learning in a number of fields including English, drama, history, architecture, and more and a library with resources about that period of history.

We want to be able to share our findings about the role of libraries in virtual worlds with immersive worlds such as Renaissance Island.  After the first year of the project, we will evaluate the project and write a report to share with all interested.