ITEMS STOLEN - 1 x WINDMILL (virtual)

PREMISES - ONECLIMATE ISLAND (on Second Life)

A windmill has been stolen from OneClimate Island, the island on Second Life devoted to climate change.

Anuradha Vittachi, instigator of the OneClimate initiative, was distraught. She said yesterday: ‘We had two beautiful windmills, a Bonus and a Vesta - till one night when the Bonus mysteriously disappeared.’

But why do virtual windmills matter, when they can’t actually produce energy, unlike their Real Life equivalents?

‘They may not make energy,’ Vittachi explained. ‘But they save carbon. People from all over the world have been visiting the island’s Learning Centre to learn how windmills work – and the beauty of it is that they have all been able to visit here without emitting any travel-generated carbon. Just think how much carbon this has saved! And they also feel encouraged to use renewable energies, which saves carbon too. But now a virtual burglar has snuck in and ruined it all.’

Only one of the windmills is visible now, and the interactive display module which produces accurate data about its energy production has vanished.

‘It took the windmill and display module makers a lot of hard work and brain-hurting maths to make this system work accurately,’ she added. ‘They did this to help bring about a more sustainable future for us all – including, burglars, a future for you and your children.

‘So think about your kids, burglars, and bring our windmill back!’

If any members of the public have seen the windmill, please inform the OneClimate team via www.oneclimate.net.