Non-Profits
paternity |
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![[The Nature Conservancy's Hellen Creek Hemlock Preserve, Lusby, Maryland.]](http://farm1.static.flickr.com/33/65715908_f080ebb14d.jpg)
firsts |
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another string of small celebrations over the weekend:
in other news, we had out latest pediatrician’s appointment on Friday. sparklet clocked in a a whopping 9 pounds, 1 1/2 ounces, which brings her up to about the 25th percentile for weight. if you couple that with 22 inches long (75th percentile) and 14 inches around (25th) she’s either going to be a bean pole, or a supermodel, or both. and lastly … i’ve got to find a new time to blog. way back when, i used to blog on my two hour round-trip, public-transit commute, but with the baby i have started driving (i know, i know) which not only takes less time (18 minutes each way) but isn’t a very good environment for multitasking. more recently, i’ve been blogging during the downtime between the 6:00 pm feeding and the 10:00 pm feeding. the lady sparkler is asleep, and sparklet *used* to be either (a) asleep or (b) blessedly docile. however, since the onset of the six hour rolling dinner feedings last week, there has been precious little time (or free hands) to write anything down. maybe they make thought-to-screen, telepathy-based dictation software for the mac … Explore the Photo Set:
sparklet’s first dress |
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![[]](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2738/4126192619_19dff4a859.jpg)
foundation center: *basic* quick and dirty case studies on social media |
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another presentation on social media today, this one at the Foundation Center in downtown D.C. this group was looking for a more basic information about social media, so we talked much more about what people (especially small orgs) should be doing in the social media space. the panel was setup by Dahna Goldstein of PhilanTech, who had a bio that would rival most noble laureates, and again featured Jocelyn Harmon (of Marketing for Non-Profits fame). no fire alarm this time, which was a good thing, because (with questions) we went a full hour over our allotted time. a lot of fascinating discussions, especially from a portion of the non-profit community (the smaller part) that might not have the same bandwidth and resources to devote to the topic. |
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bridge 2009: quick and dirty case studies for social media fundraising and engagement |
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I presented at Bridge this afternoon, a conference for non-profit fundraisers and marketers. Our session (with Jocelyn Harmon of Marketing for Non-Profits fame) was a nice little road map for non-profits deciding if they should be in the social media space, and how to best go about getting there. I was brought in for case studies, and focused on Facebook Causes, Flickr, the new my.nature.org, and online donation based social media. We actually had a third presenter, Roz Lemieux from Fission Strategy, but the fire alarm went off 30 minutes out from the end and she never made it podium. It was the last day of the conference, during the last session — why do i keep getting the graveyard shifts? — and nobody seemed interested in going back to the conference room after the all clear was given. Now, if we had offered to finish it up at the hotel bar … who knows what sort of attendance we would have had. Speaking of, the conference was at the Gaylord / National Harbor way out in suburban Maryland. The compound certainly was impressive, but in a fake, Disneyland sorta way. Everything was shiny and massive, but rang (more than) a little hollow. Not to mention, the Gaylord are the people who stole “The Awakening” from DC’s Hains Point, so I am already rooting for their speedy demise. On the flip side, at least I have another reason to hate the ‘burbs … with all the baby shopping at suburban big box stores, I was obviously starting to run out. |
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found photo: retreat, lake accotink, virginia |
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![[]](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2464/3663001389_5fc115dbd1.jpg)
shamu snubs the conservancy |
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Well, not really Sea World / Busch Gardens and their “Animal Ambassadors” stopped by the Conservancy this morning … and a couple hundred of us gathered in the garden out back to see a Red-necked Wallaby, some type of lizard, an American Alligator and Magellan Penguin. Shamu (the killer whale) did not attend, nor was he expected (can you imagine *that* kennel carrier?) I have to say that (a) the southern tip of Argentina is back at the top of my travel list, and (b) everyday would be better with penguins. Photo: Penguin (detail) © Amy Hawthorne.
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earth day 2009 |
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we are using my.nature.org to post a ton of user-generated content we collect from our flickr efforts, the message of hope campaign, and our everyday environmental tips. visitors can also customize the site to match their personal interests, hobbies and issues. hopefully, it all comes together in our Spring Outside 2009, where we are trying to get people outside with their friends and family this Earth Day. and, the fact that this is done means that at least *i* will be able to get outside this spring … |
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the state of the birds |
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We recently participated in a sweeping study that looks at the health of bird populations around the country and what this means for the future of our birds. With that in mind, and in full recognition of how incrediably strong our birding community is, we launched a mini-site where people can learn about the threats to birds in the U.S., share their best places to bird, and submit their favorite bird photos. We also threw in a sweet little desktop screensaver of bird images from our Flickr community. |
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![[Photo]](http://farm1.static.flickr.com/197/496203801_426ec11056_m.jpg)
plant a billion lights |
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I’ve never seen my name in lights, but maybe this is the next best thing … this week, someone donated space on the billboards that surround times square to the plant a billion trees campaign. (that’s the nature conservancy’s tree planting effort in the brazillian rain forest that I raised money for last earth day — and helped launch as part of my day job.) I haven’t heard anything about who the donor was, or how they chose us, but it’s fantastic to see such an important cause get the recognition (imho) it so richly deserves. |
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dma 2009: revolution or evolution |
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Presentation today with the fine people at Planit, an agency out of Baltimore. All my slides are mixed into the main presentation, but they are the case studies around registration form testing, landing page to donation form conversion, social media (flickr, facebook widgets) and lifecycle emails.
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being able to take this much time is one of the great benefits of working at a non-profit — and one of the great benefits of having great coworkers — that i can (a) disappear for this long, and (b) not be worried that the world is going to end without me.
right now, the only burning question in my mind is whether i will now have more time to blog, or less. and i guess that means that life is pretty good.