New Zealand

North Palm Beach, FL, September 4, 2009 — Edmund Benson, former at-risk kid and founder of ARISE Foundation, is celebrating his 80th birthday by giving a gift to the international nonprofit community: the creative licenses for all of the 100 ARISE life-skills curricula materials. Benson will allow the materials to be translated free of charge into any language (except Spanish, which has been done), for use in life-skills training programs around the world.

NEW YORK & WALTHAM, Mass., June 23, 2009 — The Rockefeller Foundation and InnoCentive, Inc., the global open innovation marketplace, today announced the renewal of their successful partnership to link non-profit organizations with InnoCentive’s Web-based global network of “Solvers,” who are more than 175,000 of the brightest minds in science, engineering, technology and business. The partnership, first established in 2006, has been overwhelmingly successful in using InnoCentive’s primarily for-profit “open innovation model” to help non-profit organizations develop solutions for their work on behalf of the world’s most poor and vulnerable populations.

PENTAX Imaging Company is pleased to announce the PDML Photo Annual comprised of artwork from 59 photographers from around the world. This book will benefit Childhood Cancer Research. The project, led by Mark Roberts, an instructor in multimedia at Youngstown State University, with photographers Doug Brewer of Richmond, KY; Bill Robb of Regina, Canada; and Scott Loveless of Harrisburg, PA, brought together 59 artists in 15 countries to create this work. Their Internet-based approach facilitated coordination between the editors and dozens of contributors scattered around the world. Photographers uploaded their images through a web site, where the editors could view them and exchange ideas and opinions through email. The book was assembled electronically and uploaded to an online publishing site where copies are printed whenever orders are placed through the web.

Amsterdam, January 26, 2009 – The Elsevier Foundation has announced today that it has committed a total of $555,000 in grants to ten institutions from around the world in support of initiatives that promote the work of libraries and scholars in science, technology and medicine. The winning proposals were selected from over 165 applicants worldwide for their innovation and potential for impact in the developing world, nursing community and academic workplace.  This year’s grants also include the newly launched Nurse Faculty Mentored Leadership Development Program.

Editor’s Note: Perhaps the best way for nonprofit organizations to learn how to effectively increase their online presence through innovative multichannel programs is to look to their peers that already are utilizing Web 2.0 channels for advocacy, friendraising and fundraising. We asked Katrin Verclas, executive director of NTEN: The Nonprofit Technology Network, to talk about some of the organizations that she sees as leading the way.