Online Communities

This past weekend, the vlogbrothers John & Hank Green hosted their 15th annual Project for Awesome, a 48-hour charity livestream event that raises money for Save the Children & Partners in Health, as well as other charities determined by the online community. This year’s event was the most successful to date, with over $2.2 million US raised, including over $1.3 million donated by members of the community.

John and Hank, along with other content creators on Youtube, spent 48-hours on camera interacting with thousands of people via chat and “performing” - whether that performance included making art, sharing memes, answering questions, or other silly activities. Experiencing these moments of shared joy with thousands of people across the world was deeply affirming in a way that has been extremely difficult to come by during the pandemic. But it also reinforced the fact that online communities matter. Online communities can offer support, a sense of belonging, purpose, happiness, and a multitude of other things that are critical and life-sustaining.

I’ve been watching the vlogbrothers’ Youtube channel since 2008. John and Hank consistently create videos that encourage their viewers to imagine other people complexly, and are deeply inspiring and thought-provoking. They are masters at cultivating and mobilizing their online community in ways that act on these values. In a lot of ways, these are values that I have let influence my teaching. But additionally, I think that being a part of an online community during the most formative years of my life has helped me transition now to online teaching more easily. It’s not unlike the charity livestream - we have the same opportunity to build relationships and meaningful connections, even through a computer screen.

Online communities form around shared goals and interests. Virtual School may have been forced into existence due to the pandemic, but that does not have to dimish the opportunities that we still have to form a connection. Virtual School is a form of an online community. However, there are barriers to acknowledge- these range from lack of technology, to mental health challenges, to lack of time. It takes time for online communities to form and grow in strength, and I’m not sure that the current quadmester format is enough. Plus, as is with school in general, not everyone may be on board. I do think there is hope for this in the form of all of the clubs and extracurriculars that are beginning to spring up in the school. I’ve seen this community start begin developing even through moderating a club on my own.

These days, we often lament that we are unable to gather in person, screen burnout is real, and the days can feel monotonous. There’s a lot to feel discouraged about. I am trying to transform this discouragment into hope, and focus on the fact that we have an incredible opportunity to still build something great. We are not alone, and there is hope in being here, together.