An Early Thanks.Giving…Carnival Style

Welcome to the Carnival. The theme for this week was “Give Thanks!” by taking a moment and sharing the tools, resources, mentors, etc. that you appreciate.

• Kivi Leroux Miller took this challenge above and beyond by giving a shout out to many, including those who participated in her tagline challenge for HIV/AIDS. (Which, if you are interested in HIV/AIDS work, have you seen what Bloggers Unite, NIDA and AIDS.gov are doing for World AIDS Day 2008?).

• Avi Kaplan wrote a wonderful thank you to Stacey Monk for her mentorship and for the hard work she is accomplishing through Epic Change. To those not familiar with Monk’s work, I too will vouch for not only her hard work, but for her genuine passion and firm conviction in Epic Change’s mission. Monk is definitely, as Avi says, a true inspiration to our sector.

• Steve Cunningham took time to offer a personal note thanking both his life and business mentors. Steve also made a point to refer to these mentors as heroes, a label I think well-deserved. For often, being a mentor takes extra time, a longer email, a phone call back or the extra support that only a mentor can offer.

“To my heroes in business and in life – thank you for teaching me that if you never stop learning and believe in yourself, great things are possible. You have made more of a difference than you could ever imagine. I owe you a lifetime of gratitude.

• As for myself, I have many people to thank who have made my dream of moving, living and working in Washington D.C. a reality. This includes:

• My employer and my boss – who I continue to admire and learn from everyday.
• My graduate professor Fritz Cropp who allowed me flexibility in my graduate research scope, the tools and knowledge to bring it together, and believed in the vision I set before myself. Plus, he reminded to live a little every now and then.
• My friend Lacey, for without you, I know I would not have survived the practical joys (and challenges) that come along with moving from Kansas to Washington D.C.
• All the amazing, social media, social marketing and non-profit minds that exist within the blogosphere, Twitter…it is you all who propel the conversation and demand more of us practitioners everyday, and I love every minute.
• To the new friends I’ve made, you rock. You are solid, supportive, and good people.
• To my beloved fiance, I love you. Each and every day. Who would imagine we’d go from running hurdles on the track together to fast forward, living our dream in Washington, D.C.
• And finally, my parents. Words cannot express. At the very least, thank you for teaching me to 1) always believe in your dreams and 2) always believe in working hard to achieve them. And that along the way, you can never be too gracious.

With that, I hope this Carnival session encourages you to share the love. Extend a hand. And tell someone the difference they’ve made in your life.

Thank You. And an early Thanks.giving to you and yours.

Carnival Time: What are You Thankful for?

It’s about that time of year again. And instead of just going through the motions “again” this year – the Carnival for Non-Profit Consultants and SocialButterfly are asking those in the non-profit sector to take time for reflection and pause. Often times, we get too caught up in the deadlines and the thrill of the moment, that we overlook giving ourselves…a moment. After all your hard work and dedication, at the very least, you deserve a moment.

Do you know anyone else who deserves a moment? Tell us about them. In fact, it doesn’t even have to be a person. This edition of the carnival asks submitters to “Give Thanks!” by taking a moment and sharing the tools, resources, mentors, etc. that you appreciate.

This is your opportunity to give a shout-out. Even if it’s a quick e-mail blurb, all messages of gratefulness will be shared.

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Theme: “Give thanks! Tell us which tools, resources, menotrs, etc. have aided you or what you are thankful for this past year.”

Deadline: Monday, November 17, Midnight

To Submit: Submit your permalink to npc.carnival@yahoo.com or use the BlogCarnival submission form. If you are sending to Yahoo directly, please include the edition date in your subject line.

Liked what you read? Feel free to share with others:

See the Good this Week’s 11-year old Blogger Neighbor is accomplishing in every 25-Day Challenge

That’s right. 1-1. 11. Eleven young and beautiful years of age. This week’s newest addition to the Blogger Neighborhood reminds us that we can all do good – no matter what our age….even my 70+ grandparents sent me an invite to join Plaxo. Now, how hip are they? Enjoy! =)

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Blog Name: 25 Days to Make a Difference

Blog Topics: Online charity project, Service work, and Kids making a difference

About the Author: Laura Stockman is 11 years old. She likes to read, do arts and crafts, and write. She has earned a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and enjoys playing baseball, swimming, and running. When she is older, she would like to be a veterinarian, a chef, or an artist. She loves helping those in need and meeting other kids who like to do the same.

Curious about how Laura started blogging?

Click here to see how Laura’s grandpa gave her the lesson of giving, and how she’s continuing to share his message with others. What started as a 25-day challenge to make a daily difference, with a promise to donate money she earned through her allowance, recycling and odd jobs, to the participant who made the most difference, is now a monthly movement! Read about how Laura raises the money and how she and her readers choose where to donate the funds.

If you could live on any street, what would that street be named and why?

Family Road because my family means a lot to me.

Who would be your dream real-life neighbor?

Our friend Frank Milkowski, who is in his eighties. He has lots of stories and is very interesting. I love him.

If you were planning the neighborhood’s block party, what entertainment would you plan?

Dancing, carnival games, relay races, and kick ball.

What first prompted you to blog?

The New York State PTA Reflections Contest. This year’s prompt was “I can make a difference by…” So I started a blog to make a difference.

If you customized your own license plate, what would it say and why?

CatzPajamaz like my aunt and uncle’s because I think it is cute.

What would you gift to a new neighbor as the perfect welcoming gift?

I would bake something like cookies to give them.

What type of communication channel do you most and least prefer since the burst of social media?

I like Artsnacks, which is a NING and I like using Skype. I dislike AIM instant messaging. It’s kind of boring.

*Parental consent was obtained to publish this post with Laura’s name and age provided.

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Past Blogger Neighbors Include:

• Osocio @ Osocio, nominated by SocialButterfly
• Beth Kanter @ Beth’s Blog, nominated by SocialButterfly
• Beth Dunn @ Small Dots, nominated by Beth Kanter
• Len Edgerly @ LenEdgerly.com, nominated by Beth Dunn
• Stacey Monk @ Epic Change, nominated by the Twitter-verse
• Jason Dick @ A Small Change, nominated by Stacey Monk
• Roger Carr @ Everyday Giving, nominated by Jason Dick
• Andre Blackman @ Pulse & Signal, nominated by SocialButterfly
• …and now Laura Stockman @ 25 Days to Make a Difference, nominated by Roger Carr

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This continuous weekly series highlights different blogs and their respective bloggers in the blogosphere neighborhood. Following the great Mr. Rogers, who tells us to ‘Get to know your neighbor,’ this series introduces us to our blogger neighbors, making for a more unified, collaborative voice for the social sector. Like to nominate someone or be featured yourself? Contact me @ socialbutterfly4change@gmail.com.

Carnival of Non-Profit Consultants: Cha-Cha-Chaaange

Hello and welcome to my first time as a host for the Carnival of Nonprofit Consultants! This week was an open call, with a personal preference for social change and social marketing type posts.

The posts listed below largely discuss and point to current nonprofit marketing trends and potentially future marketing trends. Though this might not reflect social marketing per say, it is a reflection of social change….how trends surface, alter, flourish, downsize and in essence, change. So enjoy this week’s carnival!

• Jordan Viator at Connection Cafe’s post Glimpses of the Past, Present and Future Online Communication Practices for Nonprofits provides an audio file from a panel discussion with nonprofit guru Vinay Bhagat. In the discussion and as Mr. Viator reflects, marketing techniques have largely changed from 2003 to 2008…greatly thanks to new media, pointing out the next big trend of constituent empowerment.

• ***Inserting my special ‘bonus host post’ here, as it follows up well with Mr. Viator’s idea. In my post Consumerism. What’s Your First Reaction?, I too coin my own term ‘optimistic consumerism,’ explaining that with changing media and times, the consumer is becoming more empowered than ever by having a choice. In particular, not only do we have a choice of what products or services we consume, but we also have a choice in the place we consume our information. *Props to choosing the Carnival, 😉

• Rebecca Leaman at Wild Apricot continues the discussion of change in her post titled 5 Keys to Effective Knowledge Transfer for Nonprofits, where she outlines how effective communication can transfer through each phase of a message. No matter how the times and technology change, Ms. Leaman’s insights and download-able resource is priceless.

• Bryan Miller at Giving in a Digital World maps out the technology hype cycle in his post titled Online Fundraising and the Hype Cycle. Mr. Miller points out how web 2.0 is making the way for community fundraising 2.0 and that knowing where your nonprofit’s fundraising efforts are will put you and your organization ahead of the curve.

• Jason Dick at A Small Change-Fundraising blog outlines three core values of traditional nonprofit fundraising in his post: Cultivation, Solicitation and Stewardship. However, Mr. Dick points out that while the traditional model is good, the big umbrella term that deserves attention is relationship. According to Mr. Dick, a good relationship means good fundraising and “all bets are off” on the traditional process.

• J. Karlin at Marketing and Fundraising Ideas sets the stage on how to implement change in the post Powerful yet Reasonable Goals. Karlin says that before change can even be accomplished as was in the case study given of Tufts University, one should dream big, and not overlook setting reasonable, attainable goals.

• Last but not least, Jeff Brooks at Donor Power Blog offers up that any amount of change, is good change, in his post Tiny Gifts: Good or Bad?.

Thanks for tuning in to this week’s carnival. Thank you for all of the submission’s this week, as I’ve found new blogs and bloggers to follow, along with some great ideas about cha-cha-chaaaange!

Keep track of the Carnival of Nonprofit Consultants, no matter which blog is hosting, by subscribing to the Carnival feed.

Another Turn on the 29-Day Giving Challenge

The 29-Day Giving Challenge movement was started by Cami, when she was faced the diagnosis of the chronic illness multiple sclerosis during a major move. A spiritual teacher of hers, Mbali Creazzo, suggested that she give away 29 things in 29 days in an effort to get outside her own struggle each day.

According to Mbali, the 29 gifts originated as an African tradition. Today, over 2,000 people have participated in the challenge so far. And, I am joining them.

The challenge focuses on giving, anything – from clothes, to money, to smiles, hugs, compliments, time and energy, love, compassion, empathy or an extra hand – any way to GIVE. The challenge does come with a set of rules, mainly, to have fun, relax and reflect.

I joined this challenge for a variety of reasons.

First, I connected to Cami’s story as my best friend has multiple sclerosis. Secondly, that same friend continues to teach me, and give to me, AND give to others on a daily basis. She is continually reading and sharing her joy for life, her keen insight into the human spirit and her enthusiasm and love for life.

So, I’m taking the challenge, and taking it another turn: I want to concentrate my giving on those that are close to me, to show appreciation and love for what they do. Often time, I think it’s easy for us to focus on trying to help others, especially in the nonprofit and social marketing fields. Sometimes, we overlook those right in front of us in the process. (Note: It’s still important to give to others, but u pickin’ up what I’m putting down, right?) Thus, I plan on doing the 29-Day Giving Challenge:

• With my boyfriend. My mom. My best friend. My roommate.
• And groups of people including coworkers, friends who live far away, the homeless, nonprofits, etc.

Imagine what we could do if we TARGETED not only our financial giving, but the gifts that take extra time, extra thought and that extra step…to say thank you, you are loved, and I care.

I invite you to join us! The 29-Day Giving Challenge also has an online community here.

I will share my reflections on my experience at the end of each time period.

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If you’ve participated in the 29-Day Giving Challenge, share your experiences with us in the comments section, =).

The Neighbor Who Gives Everyday, Welcome Roger Carr

The newest addition to the Blogger Neighborhood is one who takes the 29-Day-Giving Challenge to the extreme by giving everyday. Roger Carr, at the blog Everyday Giving, was nominated by our last addition to the neighborhood: Jason Dick at A Small Change.

Read below to learn more about Roger and how he is working to inspire others to give…everyday. Enjoy, and stay tuned to see who Roger nominated for next week!

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Blog Name: Everyday Giving

Blog Topics: All types of philanthropy including volunteering, financial giving and acts of kindness

About the Author: Roger Carr is the founder and owner of Everyday Giving. he is a writer and speaker on the subject of making a difference. Roger is the author of the ebook “Wake Up and Make a Difference” and a co-author of the book “101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life.” He is an adviser to nonprofits regarding the establishment of an effective online presence and online marketing.

Roger is also a board member and volunteer with the Arthritis Foundation, Virginia Chapter. He has chaired the annual Fredericksburg Arthritis Walk fund raising event for the past three years. Roger lives with his wife, Kim, and son, Trevor, in historic Fredericksburg, Virginia.

If you could live on any street, what would that street be named and why?

A street named Hope Avenue would be a great address to live at. It would provide a daily reminder that we can have hope (and give hope) regardless of our circumstances.

Who would be your dream real-life neighbor?

Someone who is a philanthropist at heart. Mark Victor Hansen is the first person who inspired me to think big and make a difference. He would be an ideal neighbor to share with on a regular basis.

What first prompted you to blog?

For some guys, mid-life crisis means fast cars and women. For me, it meant discovering my life purpose, helping people help others. Blogging was one great way to help fulfill that purpose.

If you customized your own license plate, what would it say and why?

GIVDALY – Another way to spread the message to give back every day.

What you gift to a new neighbor as the perfect welcoming gift?

It depends on the neighbor. A young college student might get a home-cooked meal. For a young family, I would give a gift of babysitting for an evening. An older couple might receive flowers.

What’s your favorite blog post and why?

One of my most popular blog posts is also one of my favorites. The post, Nature Retreat in Washington DC Area, combines my love for hiking, photography and promoting a nonprofit organization, The Nature Conservancy.

What’s one lesson you’ve learned from blogging?

Blogging is not an individual sport. It is important to support fellow bloggers to be truly successful. This Blogger Neighborhood Series is a great example.

Past Blogger Neighbors Include:

• Osocio @ Osocio, nominated by SocialButterfly
• Beth Kanter @ Beth’s Blog, nominated by SocialButterfly
• Beth Dunn @ Small Dots, nominated by Beth Kanter
• Len Edgerly @ LenEdgerly.com, nominated by Beth Dunn
• Stacey Monk @ Epic Change, nominated by the Twitter-verse
• Jason Dick @ A Small Change, nominated by Stacey Monk
• …and now, Roger Carr @ Everyday Giving, nominated by Jason Dick

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This continuous weekly series highlights different blogs and their respective bloggers in the blogosphere neighborhood. Following the great Mr. Rogers, who tells us to ‘Get to know your neighbor,’ this series introduces us to our blogger neighbors, making for a more unified, collaborative voice for the social sector. Like to nominate someone or be featured yourself? Contact me @ socialbutterfly4change@gmail.com.

Be Inspired by this Week’s Blogger Neighbor: Stacey Monk @ EpicChange

Continuing my weekly “Blogger Neighborhood Series” in honor of the great Mr. Rogers, who called us to “Get to know our neighbor,” I welcome Stacey Monk from Epic Change, who continues to leave me inspired.

Stacey is an amazing writer, showing both her contagious passion and gracious, sincere personality through every word, so I’ll let her tell you about her journey, mission and how she’s gotten to where she is…

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Blog Name:

The Epic Change Blog

Blog Topics:

The Epic Change Blog is a diary of our experiment in social entrepreneurship and an organization I recently founded called Epic Change. We started it just after we received our 501c3 determination last September, and we blog whatever we’ve experienced on the journey since then, including:

• our social media and storytelling efforts,
• updates from Mama Lucy, the founder of the school we’re helping to rebuild in Tanzania,
• anecdotal stories about our trips and stories of the children at the school like Gideon & Glory,
• the inspirations for our work, and
• our feelings about the social entrepreneurship experience.

We try to give a complete, transparent picture of what we’re working on so that our supporters can feel engaged in what we’re doing, and so other folks can learn from our mistakes and successes. We also try to provide regular opportunities on our blog for folks to get involved. Last week, for instance, to celebrate National Volunteer Week, we provided daily opportunities for our readers to perform 10-minute volunteer activities.

About the Author:

I’m a nerd, a recovering military brat, a perpetual nomad and a total sap. I believe the world is what we make it. I started my career managing a performing arts series, moved into public sector consulting for Deloitte, then worked in IT strategy & change leadership at Genentech and, finally, launched a small change management consulting firm called Funken Consulting. Last year, I left for Africa, came back, stopped working for money & founded Epic Change, a nonprofit that “helps hopeful people in need tell their epic true stories to acquire the resources they need to create change in their communities.” I have a BA in Philosophy and a grad degree in performing arts management from the public policy school at Carnegie Mellon. I like to think that artsy background helps me be more creative in my approach to social change. You can check out my street cred on LinkedIn.

If you could live on any street, what would that street be named and why?

I’d live where Hope, Audacity, Authenticity, & Gratitude intersect because I know I’d like the other people who live there. [This is my favorite quote of the week!]

Who would be your dream real-life neighbor?

Any man who can sing. For today, let’s say John Mayer. His song Say is stuck on my brain. Or maybe Josh Groban. His voice makes me feel like I’m in the presence of an angel.

If you were in charge of the planning the neighborhood’s block party, what entertainment would you plan?

Ditto, previous question. Or I’d plan a performance by a dance troupe that I love like Alvin Ailey or Momix. Or we’d dance ourselves, which might be the most fun. Despite my chubbiness, I love to dance. I’m certified to teach ZUMBA and Shake Your Soul.

If you customized your own license plate, what would it say and why?

FEARNOT, URHOPE or THANKU

What would you gift to a new neighbor as the perfect welcoming gift?

Blueberry Pie. Despite 1950s connotations, pies = love.

What’s your favorite blog post and why?

I’d like to point to something brilliant by someone else, because I’ve taken so much as inspiration. Right now, today, though, I’m really wrapped up in what’s unfolding as a result of my recent, totally random, guest post on the Go Big Always blog of Jive CMO Sam Lawrence. I met him totally randomly on Twitter, and last Wednesday after midnight, when he was tweeting that he didn’t feel like posting to his uber-popular marketing blog, I offered to take his place. He, probably in jest, wrote back “Go for it ;)” and I did. That single post has led to a flurry of others, including one on ZDNet, a tweet by @Scobleizer, and a connection to social media giant Jeremiah Owyang, as well as a drastic increase in the number of people interested in our cause. So for today, the Go Big Always post is surely my fave, despite the fact that it begins with a reference to feces.

What’s one lesson you’ve learned from blogging?

Be authentic.

Past Blogger Neighbors Include:

• Osocio @ Osocio nominated by SocialButterfly
• Beth Kanter @ Beth’s Blog nominated by SocialButterfly
• Beth Dunn @ Small Dots nominated by Beth Kanter
• Len Edgerly @ LenEdgerly.com nominated by Beth Dunn
• …and now, Stacey Monk @ Epic Change nominated by the Twitter-verse

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This continuous weekly series highlights different blogs and their respective bloggers in the blogosphere neighborhood. Following the great Mr. Rogers, who tells us to ‘Get to know your neighbor,’ this series introduces us to our blogger neighbors, making for a more unified, collaborative voice for the social sector. Like to nominate someone or be featured yourself? Contact me @ socialbutterfly4change@gmail.com.

Free Rice: Mixing Online Learning and Entertainment with Giving

Have some extra time but also want to engage the brain? Try Free Rice.

Play a simple word game and based on your success, rice will be donated to hungry children.

How It Works

A word appears and asks you to define it. Every definition you correctly identify donates 20 grains of rice. You’re intriguing the mind, using social media tools AND giving. Talk about collaborative innovation.

There are 55 different vocabulary levels, with customized options for your own vocabulary growth…the site says that most people don’t get beyond level 48. Will you be the one to reach level 55?!?

The words are also constantly evaluated on their difficulty level depending on how many people get the word right or wrong and new words are always being added.

Why

Free Rice also lists many reasons why its encourages the development of vocabulary as part of its mission in its FAQ section of its website. They include:

• Formulate your ideas better
• Write better papers, emails and business letters
• Speak more precisely and persuasively
• Comprehend more of what you read
• Read faster because you comprehend better
• Get better grades in high school, college and graduate school
• Score higher on tests like the SAT, GRE, LSAT and GMAT
• Perform better at job interviews and conferences
• Sell yourself, your services, and your products better
• Be more effective and successful at your job

Who Finances The Donation?

According to the site, the site’s advertisers are the ones who actually pay for the rice to be donated. And, the site itself does not run a profit. Thus, you play, advertisers pay to be listed on the site, that money funds the rice donation.

Distribution

The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) distributes the rice. The WFP works with over 1,000 organizations in over 75 countries, making it the world’s largest food aid agency. When possible, WFP buys the food through the local growers and economy.

Results

From its start on October 7, 2007 to April 27, 2008, the total number of rice grains donated = 29,724,130,370! For a break down of results, click here.

More

To learn more about hunger, visit Poverty.com, an interactive site that teaches about hunger and poverty, and even tracks how many hunger deaths occur per hour through a moving, interactive map…

Other Helpful Sites include:

• The ONE Campaign
  
• UNICEF
• Millennium Campaign
• Global Issues
• MORE

Do You…Razoo?

Social networking gains momentum everyday. My latest find includes the beta Razoo. Razoo is a New Zealand word for a small coin. Founder J. Sebastian Traeger likes to think that a lot of something small good can turn into something great. According to the website:

Razoo is a community united around making a positive difference in the world. Where passion leads to action, and a whole lot of collective good comes from individual contributions.

Razoo is a for-profit online community where members can create profiles, join groups, create groups, post comments, share blogs, support causes and keep updated on new events in the non-profit world. Causes include a full range from saving the ocean to aiding the homeless to international development. In turn, Razoo then donates grant money to the causes who host the most members. I encourage you to check the site out. The best past about the site is that you do not have to be a member to browse.

Razoo has recently been featured in the Washington Post. Both articles come from December 07:

1. Social Networking for Social Causes. This article talks about Razoo and other social networking applications that work for the social good.
2. Social Networking for the Socially Minded. This article provides more background on how the internet start-up began and its history.

The Gift of Giving

As a girl, I tend to want to give and receive gifts that are personal, meaningful and memory making. Thus, I wanted to highlight some ways to give the literal gift of ‘giving’ this holiday season. (And, judging on my google search of ‘gift of giving,’ many others are feelin’ the same way.) Here are some ideas on giving this season (in no particular order):

1. Make it Fun. Dig celebrity gossip and also enjoy doing good? DO Something magazines lists the Top 11 of ‘Celebs Gone Good’ ideas to donate. Items range from supporting Brad Pitt’s initiative to rebuild a green New Orleans to celebrity auction items to real-life social and environmental issue-focused documentaries and DVDs (Sicko, Blood Diamond, Hotel Rwanda, etc.)

2. Give time, Volunteer! Go to VolunteerMatch, an internet service that allows you to type in your zipcode and bippity, boppity…boom! a list of places needing volunteers appears right before your eyes. Not only can volunteers find places to serve, but non-profits can also place listings for the type of volunteers they need.

3. Go local. Contact your local community center or school and help locate families or communities in need. My family and I, along with a group of friends, took a single-working mother and her two children shopping, so they could feel empowered in providing a Christmas for each other. Needless to say, it was a greater gift for my parents and I that this family welcomed us, and allowed us to spend an evening with their family. Giving doesn’t have to be to a grand, official non-profit or cause, there are those in every community who could use some holiday kindness. And though it may take more time or perseverance than writing a check, the rewards and memory are more than words can define.

One man, reflects on his view of giving:

“Happiness comes from giving, not getting. If we try hard to bring happiness to others, we cannot stop it from coming to us also. To get joy, we must give it, and to keep joy, we must scatter it.” – John Templeton

Happy holidays this wonderful season! =)