The World Development Movement has become one of the first charities to use online digital world Second Life as a campaigning tool.
It has created a large 'death counter', which shows that more than 36 million children have died as a result of poverty since the launch of the site in 2003.
WDM has started a virtual campaigning group and plans to hold public meetings in Second Life, which allows users to live a virtual life through a character of their own creation. "We are here to remind users they can't escape the problems of the real world," said Peter Taylor, web officer at WDM.
The American Cancer Society and South African group the Thusanani Children's Foundation already use Second Life. Amnesty International is investigating doing so (Third Sector, 29 November).
