Net Effect I logged on late to the live-streamed event, Internet Advocacy Roundtable: The Future of Emailing Congress - New Solutions Offered and Old Myths Busted, hosted by the Center for American Progress Action Fund.

I caught up on 40Brown's Live Blog where Daniel Bennett, co-author of the Net Effect and consultant for elected representatives and non-profit organizations, started off by quoting,

Software and laws are like sausages- they're good, but you shouldn't see them being made!

(Personally, I like to know what my sausage is made of.)

Daniel cleared up some misunderstandings and myths in Internet Communications between Congress and constituents.

Flickr Photo: Michelle BreaA couple of weeks ago, I wrote about some new strategies I'm using to keep track of the nineteen million things I'm either supposed to know or do something about. It's been working really well for me, but I realized that my netvibes page was missing hard tech news.

At the same time, we've been thinking about starting a book club here at NTEN and I wondered what good old fashioned books folks were reading about social media.

I asked for recommendations for both on Twitter yesterday and got a great list of ideas that several people asked me to compile. Here it is:

Flickr Photo: RobjtakThe leadership gap: wherever I go in the nonprofit world these days, the leadership gap comes up in conversation. Lots of research by lots of smart people points in one direction -- nonprofit leaders are leaving the sector at an increasing rate, and their staff don't feel ready or aren't interested in replacing them. (Get the specifics from Bridgespan's "Leadership Deficit" report and "Ready to Lead" from the Meyer Foundation, Idealist and Compasspoint.)

At the same time, I've heard rumbling in the NTEN universe from those of you who play another role in your organizations: technology leadership. CIOs and CTOs -- and those who do the work without the official title -- are all talking about a vacuum of technology leadership at their organizations. But if you go, who will follow?

If that's how you've been feeling, you're not imagining things.

I attended a free webinar last week on the new book, Groundswell: Winning in World Transformed by Technologies, presented by its authors, Josh Bernoff and Charlene Li of Forrester Research.

The book is geared toward the for-profit sector, but the strategies can be adopted by nonprofits in terms of building community, engaging activists, and even raising financial support around a cause or organization online.

I want to provide some of those applications and takeaways from the session:

Flickr Photo: alexander drachmannWe started the week off here at NTEN with a Q&A session with Chris Brogan, who answered questions from NTEN members about engaging people through social media. In case you missed it, you can see a transcript of the questions in the materials section (and if you're a member of NTEN, you can get the recording) here.

Chris commented a few times on how impressed he was by the questions you all asked him -- demonstrating yet again that, in many ways, the nonprofit sector is a leader in harnessing the power of social media to engage and energize communities and individuals online.

Here is a summary of take-aways from the session:

Flickr photo: scotsman001 So, you work at a nonprofit organization and you've been hearing about ways you can reach your constituents, organize your work place, and raise money for your cause with the help of technology. Maybe you've even started learning about some specific strategies, tools, and trends -- with the help of NTEN, of course.

But let's face it: there's a lot that has to happen between learning about cool tools or trends and investing in new products or services for your organization. No matter how cool a new technology may be, you can only stretch your organization's budget so far.

NTEN wants to help -- and so do our discount partners!

Starting next week, NTEN is presenting a new series of webinars called "Show & Tell" that will give you a personal tour of the products and services that are within your reach, thanks to the discounts provided to NTEN members.

> Free! Learn more and sign up today.

You'll get up close and personal with our discount partners to learn more about their specific tools and services, ask questions about the products, and take advantage of special savings.

In this first installment, you'll learn about:

• Web and audio conferencing services
• Web 2.0 platforms
• E-communications tools
• Data storage and recovery services
• Website development services

All are welcome! NTEN members and anyone else interested in learning more about these tools and discount opportunities are invited to join us for the free Show & Tell sessions.

Your guide to the resources that will help you put technology to work for your cause, this month with an environmental focus. Earth Day may have passed, but that's no reason not to try a little harder every day. Think of what will happen when everybody does.

Determine Your Impact

> It seems that if you run an environmental website, you need to offer a calculator of some sort. For overall carbon footprint, we liked the offering from Redefining Progress best -- and not just because it said we would need only 2.2 Earths if everybody lived like us, as opposed to the 2.7 reported by Earth Day Network. That's half an Earth! If you're short on time, Zerofootprint.net wants to organize the like-minded, social network style, but you can just use their One Minute Calculator.

> Then there are the more specific calculators. The Sierra Club lets you determine not only how much fuel, but how much money you would save if your current car met proposed new standards. There's even a Call to Action after you use it, so it's a good model, as well. And if you're concerned about your diet, you can score it for Health, Environmental Impact, and Animal Welfare. Just be warned that, apparently, eating anything at all is bad for the environment.

> Need more environmental calculations in your life? Suite101.com has a long list.

Use Less Energy

> After using those calculators, you may be a little concerned -- that's the sensation they're supposed to inspire, after all. 2.2 Earths? That's at least 1.2 Earths too many -- and even then, Shanghai, Houston, and Mexico City will still be smoggy.

> So, let's do something. Greener Choices breaks down household energy use by function. The Department of Energy has a list of ways to cut those numbers down, while Energy Star's site helps you find new, more efficient products.

> One of the hobgoblins of energy waste is Phantom Power Drain (which even sounds like a hobgoblin's name). If you walk into your living room at night and see blinking lights or the steady glow of LEDs, you're losing power, up to 15% of your total bill. Belkin's new Conserve power strip -- it comes with a remote control! -- can help stop PPD.

Make Every Day Earth Day

> Getting a new computer at work? Congratulations! Now, recycle that old one. Earth 911 and the Environmental Protection Agency both have information on how to keep your old compy from being dumped on India like a tech support phone call.

> You should also check out GreenPrint. Their software promises to eliminate "unwanted pages saving paper, ink, money, and millions of trees." 2.2 Earths worth of trees, we hope.

> Closer to home, you can get ready to ride your bike to work with these tips. Going out for sushi (on your bike)? Don't forget this wallet-sized list of seafood you should avoid. Oh, and: pack a lunch! Take-out litter generates 1.8 million tons of trash every year in the U.S.

A monthly roundup of our favorite nonprofit tech resources. Read more posts on our blog.

1. 42 Ways Not To Make Trash. We believe No Impact Man may be the reincarnation of Too Much Coffee Man.
2. Soocial promises to manage your address book across your computers, mobile phones, even Gmail. Their demo movie uses vintage Knight Rider clips. What is it with Europeans and David Hasselhoff?
3. Facebook's new "Insider's Guide to Viral Marketing". As one wag puts it, "First they ban you from spamming your friends, then they tell you how to do it."
4. WaterSaver Technology's AQUS: Flush your toilet with waste water from your sink! Without using a bucket!
5. Blog It promises to update all your blogs from within Facebook.
6. TeachStreet. We like the concept of linking students to teachers. The Beta is limited to Seattle, which explains the beer making and How to Use Microsoft classes.
7. The Sea Level Rise Explorer uses the Google Maps terrain feature. Looks like Portland won't get too wet...
8. Salesforgle. OK, we made that up, but the integration between Salesforce.com and Google Apps shows great promise.
9. Tired of wearing the same clothes everyday? Use Rehash to swap with others -- everything from "Cute Black Top" to "Faux Snakeskin Eyeglass Case" -- rather than buying new.
10. "Rebooting America: Democracy in the 21st Century". There's still time to submit your own work for inclusion in the anthology.

Chris BroganAre you an NTEN member? Then you're in luck! Chris Brogan, social media expert, is going to be kind enough to share an hour with us next week for an Ask the Expert session.

Okay, so Chris prefers to say he's not an expert, but that he advises people on social media use. That doesn't change the fact that he's smart and savvy on the social media front. One of his specialties? Starting and maintaining conversations with stakeholders.

If your organization is trying to figure out how to move your stakeholders from passive listeners to passionate participants, this is your golden opportunity. NTEN Members get exclusive access to ask questions and hear them answered, for free!

Join us on Monday, May 5 at 11am Pacific for this phone call and live chat. The event is free for NTEN members, so sign up today.