Alcyan: What do you expect and hope to achieve for both disabled and non-disabled members of the VA?
Gentle: Again, it’s pretty much the same for everyone. Each of us in a virtual world gets to set our own goals of what we want to get out of being here. One thing I know we have achieved is to show that people with disabilities have capabilities equivalent to those of persons without disabilities in many areas. We can be creative, supportive, insightful… just like persons without disabilities.
Alcyan: Does VA offers any public programs?
Gentle: Yes. Some of our daily events (lessons, activities) are public. Not all, some are targeted at our members directly. And we have two large annual professional conferences. The Mental Health Symposium is held in the spring. The International Disability Rights Affirmation Conference (IDRAC) is held each fall.
Alcyan: Does VA promotes arts, culture, education on specific topics?
Gentle: We have an art gallery on our Cape Able sim. We also have a specialty library on our Cape Serenity sim. Both of those feature works only by persons with disabilities. That way we can show the general public that people with disabilities have many abilities as well.