ZoneGreen

I have schizophrenia, and many of those afflicted with this illness experience long-term unemployment. I propose to create an Internet-XO Laptop cafe for people with mental health issues such as schizophrenia. I call this cafe “Zone Green.”

Every member of Zone Green is issued photo ID, and these ID cards have a magnetic stripe or a bar code. When the member arrives at Zone Green, the ID card is scanned/swiped, and the member is issued an XO Laptop (all of these laptops are green). The info on the member's card gives that member access to private documents (including old emails) located on a central server. When the member leaves Zone Green, the laptop is returned (every laptop is equipped with an anti-theft device, which sets off an alarm should a member attempt to carry a laptop off the premises).

Zone Green also provides 10 or more Windows workstations, which must be booked in advance for 2-hour sessions. Non-alcoholic beverages (such as coffee, tea, and pop) and snacks are available for purchase.

The main goal of Zone Green is to give those with serious mental illness an opportunity to participate in computer-related activities, which gets them out of the house and provides stimulation. Another goal of Zone Green is to foster a sense of community amongst those with mental health issues.

Some examples of computer-related activities include playing games (arcade-style, board games, role-playing, MUDs, etc.), surfing the Net, creative writing, publishing a weekly newsletter, desktop publishing, and taking courses using educational software. Examples of courses (taught by volunteer tutors) include literacy, numeracy, math, science, using computer software, programming, web site design, creative writing, desktop publishing, keyboarding, art, animation, etc.

Pilot Project

Prior to obtaining funding for Zone Green, I propose to initiate a pilot project located in my condo. I hope to acquire 3 XO Laptops, and one day a week, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., I will set up these laptops on my kitchen table (which comfortably seats 4). I will also install Linux on my 2 desktops, which are already set up on a 10-foot long J-shaped desk in my den. (The Windows partition on my main desktop will be password-protected.) All these computers will be networked together, sharing 2 printers and a high-speed Internet connection.

I intend to approach existing organizations which serve those with mental health issues, such as Progress Place (a clubhouse for people with mental health issues, which I attended in 1990), and Community Resource Connections of Toronto (CRCT), which I approached a few years ago in an unsuccessful attempt to create a database of mental health resources in Toronto. I will ask permission of these organizations to post a notice on their bulletin boards advertising my pilot project, and inviting potential members to make use of my 5 Linux computers one day a week. My condo is a 5-minute walk from Dundas West subway station.

The notice posted on those bulletin boards would give a phone number, and those wishing to use one of my 5 computers would be required to call that number and reserve a spot. I would make use of the distinctive ring feature of my phone service provider, as well as having a distinctive voice mail greeting for people calling to reserve computer time: You have reached Zone Green, blah, blah. The notice would also indicate that I give computer instruction (Linux, not Windows), and would give a web address: www.zonegreen.org. I would register this domain and redirect web traffic to my OLPC wiki: http://wiki.laptop.org/go/ZoneGreen.

Michael Gardiner