Second Life can be an virtual embassy, which is role to let visitor experience different culture via the virtual creation or make the visitor understand specific issues.
interview with mr. Dongyun Youm - web front-end developer at Liden Lab
What is Second life?
I have answer for this since my first day in Linden Lab (creator of the Second Life). Second Life is a virtual world, not a game. Yes, this is an official answer, and also my answer or comment to people who says Second Life is a game. Back in 2009 and 2010, Second Life extended its product to global Asian market like Korea and Japan. From Korean users, I open got question what the Second Life is.
How big was the team working this project?
I was there from 2006 to 2010 in Linden Lab. At that time around, we were extending Second Life to global market. I recall there were about 300 people were working. This includes almost everyone like programmers, country specific region directors, in-world liaisons, community managers and etc.
How does it help to their diplomacy, what did they get/lost?
In the Second Life, there are no countries, border lines nor politics. So I would say the meaning of diplomacy may slightly different with real life (SLer say real life as First Life). In the Second Life, bumping into an avatar who speaks same language or country is really hard same as bumping into an avatar who has same costume (well, except in Welcome Area like Orientation Island and Welcome Island, there are a lot of avatars who has exactly same costume, like Agent Smith in Matrix).
Since the Second Life is a virtual world that anyone can have their own world and share it with anyone who has their own other world. So, anyone can be an ambassador of their own world. Yes, there are avatars that are being an acting ambassador of the owner’s First Life country. Those avatars not so much different compare with the First Life ambassador. They introduce own countries’ culture via their own creation in Second Life. They provide real time translation bot in their sim, so visiting avatars can perfectly understand the culture without language barrier.
In Second Life, both side - avatar who want to be a self-motivated ambassador and avatar who want to experience other world has total freedom. They can create whatever they want to introduce to represent their own First Life countries’ culture or issues. They can simply teleport world to world without paying anything, and virtually experience new world’s culture.
Since the Second Life is a virtual world that anyone can have their own world and share it with anyone who has their own other world. So, anyone can be an ambassador of their own world.
Has Diplomacy Island ever been realized? What supposed to be the main mission for diplomats?
There must be realization of DI. I just did not know that when I was in Linden Lab and Second Life.
From your own experience what could be a role of virtual embassy in real diplomacy?
So if I may say the avatar’s(or owner’s) creation itself in Second Life can be an virtual embassy, the role of virtual embassy is let visitor(or other avatar) experience different culture via the virtual creation or make the visitor(or other avatar) understand specific issues.
Is it possible to analyze virtual citizens and their relation to particular embassy? How?
I personally think virtual citizens are also embassy. All Second Life users have an avatar, avatars actually represents their creators in a way or the other, First Life people who own Second Life avatar at least somehow give their real life culture to their creation in Second Life include their avatar. Event they have built unique world in Second Life and become all time resident, when they face new avatar who has been in different culture, they will try to make the new avatar experience what they have built in the Second Life.
Could officials (governments) through virtual embassies reach a different audience to create public diplomacy?
That is totally possible, and I have seen similar case in my day of Second Life. There was a really beautiful sim that had Korean traditional palace building (Gyeongbokgung Palace) in it. It was really well built, and the creator of the palace tried hard to build it same as real life one. A lot of avatars from a lot of countries or world had visited and enjoyed the view of the palace, and had a lot of compings and meetings at that palace. It was actually not built by officials, but it was good example that one culture is new culture to others and enjoying that culture.
Have virtual embassies faced some difficulties from players? Who deal with it and how?
Of cause, if there are too much freedom, there are always problems and difficulties. Since those avatars in Second Life also represent some part of First Life owners feeling and emotions. Same life real world, virtual world also have same problem somehow. In Second Life, there are moderators - Lindens. There are avatars that have Linden as their last name, they are a listeners and cleaners, who listen conflicts and cleaning issues. Also there is strong and undeniable constitution - a system rule. Once you blocked by system, you never get back your avatar ever again without hacking the Second Life.
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