Virtual Sisters [IMAGE] _________________________________________________________________ Around the globe women activists are struggling to strengthen and expand their networks, publish and distribute their ideas, gather information and play a central role in decision-making in all areas. To accomplish their goals women need access to and control of the emerging electronic communications media. Planning, funding, infrastructure building, training and resource development are all needed in order for women's organisations to take full advantage of these powerful tools. Virtual Sisterhood, a global women's electronic support network, is dedicated to increasing women's access to and effective use of electronic communications.Virtual Sisterhood is a new electronic resource for women on-line. Though still in its infancy, it is rapidly developing an extensive network for women around the world to share information, advice and experiences. Resources include the electronic conference/mailing list; a WWW site for archive info on Virtual Sisterhood, women produced electronic resources, FAQ (frequently asked questions) and related info: and a consulting service for women on electronic information strategies and technical assistance for developing electronic information resources. Currently under development is their directory/resource guide, a comprehensive list of women and organisations engaged in electronic communications sand publishing, including service providers, trainers, information resource developers, activist groups etc. Geekgirl caught up with Barbara Ann O'Leary, founder of Virtual Sisterhood, via email to find out how this great resource for women on-line began... Barbara Ann O'Leary:Virtual Sisterhood's been forming in my head for about a year and a half. Working for the past 3 years within an international women's advocacy organisation, WEDO, I became more and more aware of the potential electronic communications holds for women activists to organize and get the word out on their work. But I also saw the difficulties women face in trying to integrate these new tools into their organization's daily operations. And, although many women are working online, no group existed to tackle these issues head-on. So Virtual Sisterhood was formed in January 1995 (just a few months ago) to see if the creation of an online sisterhood of women activists could make a difference. So far the response has been wonderfully encouraging. GG:Roughly how many individuals/groups access Virtual Sisterhood, and is it a fairly global representation? BO'L:Over a hundred groups and individuals from various parts of the world - all working in different issue areas - have been participating in Virtual Sisterhood's electronic discussion of women's online strategies through the APC [Association for Progressive Communication, a global computer network dedicated to supporting social change activism] conferencing system or through the associated Internet mailing list. I've noted participation from women in Germany, Bulgaria, Poland, Costa Rica, Mexico, Canada, USA, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Former Yugoslavia, Japan and St. Thomas in the electronic discussion. In addition to the online resources Virtual Sisterhood provides (look for our new WWW and Gopher sites just launched this month), women's groups work directly with Virtual Sisterhood to develop Electronic Information Strategies tailored to their organizations' needs and create online spaces of their own. Virtual Sisterhood has worked and will continue to work with women from all regions of the world. Virtual Sisterhood has recently engaged with networks of women in Senegal, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, India, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Costa Rica, Uruguay, Chile, Peru, Tunisia, West Bank and Gaza, USA, Canada, and the Former Soviet Block among others. GG: What are the main issues that women seem to be discussing in the online forum? BO'L:Women active in the vs-online-strat discussions have been sharing information about their own online work, exchanging information about the process - both the obstacles and the excitement - of getting their organizations online, thinking about what it means to have your own cyberspace and many other topics. GG: What is the response like to Virtual Sisterhood's Consulting Services? BO'L:Virtual Sisterhood's consulting services have gotten right off the ground. A few examples of Virtual Sisterhood's recent consulting work: * Advised the Network of East-West Women on their plans (already underway) to get their International Steering Committee members in Central/Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union online. * Trained staff and established a gopher for Native American Women's Health Education Resource Center. * Met with representatives from 3 continents to develop plan to electronically link Women Living Under Muslim Laws' global network. Plans are in development for several Gopher and World Wide Web sites for major international women's organizations and networks. GG:What sort of feedback are you getting from women who access Virtual Sisterhood? BO'L:The feedback has been tremendous. In just a few short months I've been in contact from women all over the world, who are interested in participating with Virtual Sisterhood to fully digitize the women's movement. I'm looking forward to watching the Virtual Sisterhood network grow, so women online always have each other to turn to when they are exploring the amazing possibilities of electronic communications. As Virtual Sisterhood grows we'll be developing and expanding our programs to highlight what women are doing online and identify information resources and tools to help women do more. All women who are developing electronic resources or organizing online are welcome to join the Virtual Sisterhood. To make your information highly visible online or to join Virtual Sisterhood's global women's electronic support network, contact: _________________________________________________________________ Virtual Sisterhood internet: vsister@igc.apc.org url: http://www.igc.apc.org/vsister/vsister.html P.O. Box 252 Metuchen, NJ 08840 USA voice: +1-908-548-3422 fax: +1-908-548-0131