Microblogs like Twitter are a great vehicle to help organize political demonstrations in countries run by corrupt governments (and an effective way to spread misinformation), but how can nonprofit organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), libraries, government programs, and other mission-based organizations really use microblogs to promote their work, increase attendance at an event, get donations or mobilize or support volunteers?

I run NetSuite.org, the philanthropic arm of NetSuite Inc. Our priority is improving the back office technology infrastructure of charities and social enterprises through product donations, pro-bono service grants and social solutions ... our greatest social impact is helping our grantees expand and extend their social impact through better back-office operations.

The deadline for the New Media for Social Change competition almost here: December 20, 2010. Interested groups and individuals should read the Rules and Regulations and fill out the online submission form as soon as possible. If you have any questions or concerns that might keep you from submitting something, please feel free to contact One World immediately by writing Scott Hudson scott.hudson@oneworld.cz.

The Kopernik is an online marketplace bringing together technology developers, donors and beneficiaries to provide basic necessities through technology to families in the developing world. Online, donors are invited to learn about the new technologies and the communities in need, then donate money towards implementing a specific project. Offline, products and tools created by technology developers and paid for by donors are sent to communities in need. I recently had a chance to connect with Scott White, the Business Development Specialist at Kopernik, to learn more.

I have just finished mentoring a number of graduate teams at the University of Auckland, School of Development. Develop 701 Development Practice and Research. I found the diversity of students and their enthusiasm for the process of handling some big assignments, such as putting a large NGO tender together, inspiring. It makes me wonder if you can do this much in a single term, with students, what the untapped potential is to create many social businesses and NGO's in underserved regions and communities.

We all know charities are finding it harder to raise funds in the current economic downturn and traditional methods aren't working. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/chuggers-shunned-as-brito...

ActionAid has come up with a viral in an attempt to find a new way to raise funds and engage with a new audience. They have tried to create a virtualisation of the warm fuzzy feeling donating to charity should give. Donate £2 to ActionAid and get a personalised video thank you complete with cute kids, Barack Obama and your own town. 

We were recently contacted by the Tactical Technology Collective, which describes itself as:

... An international NGO that provide human rights  advocates with guides, tools, training and consultancy to help them develop the skills and tactics they need to increase the impact of their campaigning.

They were hoping that NetSquared (that's us) would let you (that's you) know that they've got some guides and toolkits available online, and that these guides and toolkits might be of some interest to you.

Check it:

 WHO WE ARE

AMIS-CAMEROON is a non governmental organisation located in Limbe. At AMIS-CAMEROON, we render services to farmers and consumers by sending SMS text messages to their mobile phones. This approach bridges existing digital divides,enhances the communication needs of the poor,and  empowers them with decision making capabilities that improve the quality of their lives.At AMIS-CAMEROON, we collaborate with a broad range of people who make our services to the rural populations and farmers achievable.

I finally write about my visit to the first Socialcamp in Germany.  There were activists, campaigners, NGOs and many others who shared their work, experiences and visions with an open spirit. Particularly, the mixture of participants from the traditional German nonprofit sector (social welfare), newer NGOs and activists were quite inspiring. This kind of mingle, which makes it very creative, happens all over again after the Socialcamp in England. The hub in Berlin offered their location and both days were filled with sesssions.

Examples