If you are a non profit I am sure you are looking for new ways to raise awareness for your organisation and attract volunteers or donations.

Here is a great example of the Anthony Nolan association doing that in the UK.

Over on their Facebook Page they posted this great image of a 'collection box' but designed as a sofa.

• Right now, there’s £42.9m in loose change down the back of the nation’s sofas
• Just think how many lives we could save with that!
• Don’t let your change disappear behind your cushions.

Pop it in a 'Sofa of Change' collection box instead – and help us provide more lifesaving transplants.

I recall the Anthony Nolan association from when I lived in the UK. Their goal is to save the lives of people with blood cancer by matching them to people willing to donate their blood stem cells for lifesaving transplants.

Apparently only 30% of suitable doners can be found within a family. In 2009/10 Anthony Nolan found 937 matches.

You will find the organisation active through social media on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and their blog.

Learn more about their cause through this video - again a great execution explaining how you can become a stem cell donor.

If you are in the UK and want to get involved as a stem cell donor contact Anthony Nolan at http://www.anthonynolan.org

Are you a non profit organisation in Ireland and interested in exploring solutions for some of the leadership and management challenges many non profits are facing in 2011?

Then check out the Partnering For Success conference being orgganised by Microsoft Ireland that takes place on the 5 May 2011 in Dublin.

I am delighted to have been approached by Microsoft Ireland to speak at the conference about how you can integrate social media into your business processes to support your organisations goals - whether they be lobbying, raising awareness of your campaigns, attracting and keeping connected to volunteers or fund raising - and I have invited to join me on stage The Special Olympics Ireland to share some of their insights on what it has meant to them to start to integrate social media communications into their organisation.

There is also an exciting opportunity for two non profit organisations who attend the conference the chance to win the opportunity to be mentored by a department within Microsoft Ireland for one year.

Date:  5 May 2011

Time:  9:00am - 3:30pm

Venue: The Morrison Hotel, Dublin

Investment: 30 euro

Book your place: Register online here

In summary here is the agenda:

9:00  – 9:30 am    Registration

9:30  – 9:40 am    Welcome and Introduction - Paul Rellis – General Manager, Microsoft Ireland

9:40  - 10:00 am    Key Note Address- Sean Gallagher of Dragons' Den

10:00 - 10: 30 am   Panel Discussion: The Leadership Challenge: The challenges, difficulties and opportunities for organisations in an environment where the need is to increase capacity to deliver service users’ needs in the midst of massive budget cuts

Bryan Dobson, RTE with Ava Battles, CEO, Carmichael Centre, Eamonn Breen, General Manager, Inspired, Eamonn Stack, General Manager, EncludeIT, Martin Cullen, Director Microsoft

10:30 - 11:00am    Social Media For Social Good – Krishna De

11:00 - 11.30am    Coffee Break

11:30 - 12:45pm    Cloud Computing – What is it and why should you care about cloud computing?

1.00 - 2:00pm   Lunch and networking

2:00 – 3:15pm    Hear how charities are using Dynamics CRM to effectively manage relationships with members, volunteers and clients; it is also helping them to manage donations, events, and client case programmes,

3:30pm    Conference close.

I also want to give a big shout out to Eamonn and the Websites Made Easy team who turned around a great PowePoint template for me to use at the conference to make my presentation stand out - and all with minimum notice!

If you are planning to attend be sure to say hi! And if you have questions you want me to address for you in my session you can post them on my social media marketing Facebook Page.

As you know I have written about the impact of strokes in my family recently - so I was interested to hear about a global campaign called '1 Mission 1 Million - Getting to the Heart of Stroke' which aims to raise awareness of atrial fibrillation. The campaign is empowering the public to decide which projects will receive a share of €1,000,000 in funds. 

In Ireland the Irish Heart Foundation is participating in the campaign and you can read below an interview I did with Sarah Horgan, Advocacy Programme Officer about the importance of your vote in this campaign - please note you can vote each day!

Each project is committed to taking action against stroke related to atrial fibrillation.  Public vote will decide which of the 32 projects will receive an award of €10,000, €50,000 or €100,000.

One in four people aged 40 years or older develop atrial fibrillation,1 the most common heart rhythm abnormality. It causes the heart to beat too fast, too slow or with an irregular rhythm, which increases the chance of stroke.

DON'T FORGET: It's not too late to enjoy discounted tickets for the Exploding media Conference on 9-10 May 2011 - and if you book through the details mentioned here you will also be supporting the Irish Heart Foundation.

Krishna: What is the background to the campaign - why is the pharma company supporting it?

Sarah: The Irish Heart Foundation has been successful in reaching the voting stages of a global initiative 1 Mission 1 Million run by Boehringer Ingelheim to highlight the dangers of Atrial Fibrillation – a significant contributor to the cause of stroke. €1 million is available to fund community-driven projects that take action against atrial fibrillation-related stroke by contributing to this goal.

As an awareness campaign, 1 Mission 1 Million focuses on education and is not intended to support projects that focus on treatment.

Boehringer Ingelheim is a global pharmaceutical company, this is part of their corporate social responsibility programme to raise awareness to atrial fibrillation.

Krishna: Why did you decide to participate?

Sarah: Atrial fibrillation (AF) causes an irregular heart-beat. This can cause blood to clot. A blood clot can enter your bloodstream and get stuck in a blood vessel supplying your brain. This blockage may then cause a stroke to occur.

People with AF are five times more likely to suffer a stroke than people who do not have the condition and the strokes from AF tend to me more severe leading to greater mortality and disability. The Irish Heart Foundation is currently running a Stroke Action campaign, a four year campaign that is being mounted to tackle a frightening lack of public awareness about stroke – Ireland’s third biggest killer.

Just as elsewhere in Europe, the detection and management of AF in Ireland is very poor and the management of AF offers a real opportunity to reduce the number of people having strokes. Our charity has achieved enormous success with the roll-out of our national FAST TV campaign on stroke symptoms.

In January of this year, a survey showed that thanks to our FAST TV ads, two top A&E departments in Dublin reported a 59% increase in the number of people receiving thrombolysis on time. To build on our success and Stroke Action, we want to bring an awareness campaign to the public on atrial fibrillation.

Krishna: What are some stats both globally and in Ireland relating to the disease and how does it impact people?

Sarah: Up to three million people worldwide have a stroke related to atrial fibrillation every year - that is one person every 12 seconds. According to the Cardiovascular Health Policy (department of health) 1% of the population have AF.

70 first-ever strokes in Ireland could be avoided in one year if 10% of patients with AF were adequately treated with warfarin (anticoagulation therapy). This would increase to 350 where warfarin treatment is available to 50% of AF patients.

An estimated 40 to 200 secondary strokes could be averted in Ireland where treatment with warfarin covers 10 to 50 % of AF patients who have already had a stroke.

So up to 550 strokes a year could be prevented through this campaign.

Krishna: What will you use the funds for?

Sarah:We are proposing a complete awareness campaign utilising PR, radio, online (including social media) advertising, patient and medic-focused information and awareness raising events. A nationwide campaign such as this would require a fund of at least €100,000.All elements of the campaign would be strongly branded “The Truth about A Fib” from the Irish Heart Foundation.

The campaign would include:

• Radio advertising – run ads to generate awareness of AF and advertise our nurse-led Heart and Stroke Helpline as being available for people wanting to discuss AF.

• Creation of a dedicated AF section on our Stroke.ie website (Ireland’s leading website for information on stroke).
• Mail communication to all GPs nationwide.
• IHF reps would also meet with 1,000 general practitioner doctors across the country to discuss AF and the use of the Cardiovascular Guidelines and our Stroke Council’s National Clinical Guidelines and Recommendations for the Care of People with Stroke and Transient Ischaemic Attacks for detection and treatment of AF.
• Increase the resources of Heart and Stroke Helpline to assist members of the public with their concerns about AF.
• Further develop our patient information in AF and stroke. This currently comprises our booklets, AF and You and Stroke – a guide for those affected by stroke and their carers, as well as 4 online (and soon to be published) leaflets and 5 factsheets.
• PR and media work throughout the 6 months and World Stroke Day. Exploit existing IHF communications including our monthly Stroke ezine; our campaign network; our Strokelink magazine; and www.stroke.ie.

Krishna: How will a decision be made about who wins?

Sarah: The proposals have been selected by an expert group and have now been launched to the public for a vote off.

In addition to the public vote, the panel will select a number of projects that deserve special recognition.

These winning projects will be called “Expert Picks” and will be announced at the end of the public voting process. The proposals with the most votes win funding for their project.

Krishna: What difference could it make to your work and people in Ireland if the Irish Heart Foundation won this award?

Sarah: There is the potential for a campaign in Ireland to save lives and save the State money. Up to 550 strokes a year could be prevented through this awareness campaign and improved treatment and management of AF.

Currently, many people with AF in Ireland go untreated. We believe that greater awareness of AF in Ireland would greatly increase the number of people who will seek help for their condition, significantly reducing their risk of stroke.

Krishna: What do people need to do to help you with your entry?

Sarah: We are asking you and your readers to support the Irish Heart Foundation by voting online for our atrial fibrillation project.

Simply follow the link below and VOTE. https://www.heartofstroke.com/truthaboutafibinireland

Krishna: Where can people go to on your site to find out more about the condition?

Sarah: The Irish Heart Foundation has published a booklet, AF and You, which is available for download online or you can order a hardcopy by emailing info@irishheart.ie or call 01 668 5001.

Krishna: What Twitter hashtag will you use to build awareness about the campaign?

Sarah: We would love people to share and talk about the campaign using the hash tag #100K4Stroke - and please don't forget to vote!

And you can follow the Irish Heart Foundation stroke Action camapign on Twitter @StrokeAction.

Krishna: Thanks so much Sarah for giving us a sense of the programme and why the public vote for your submission would make such a difference to people in Ireland.

Remember to caste your vote each day at https://www.heartofstroke.com/truthaboutafibinirelan

Here is a nice campaign using YouTube and Twitter to raise awareness in Ireland for a fatal disease that impacts children - Batten disease (Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinoses) which is an inherited disorder of the nervous system.

This week sees us celebrating Mother's Day in Ireland and as a mum of three I am certainly looking forward to receiving a lovely hug and a cup of tea in bed - you never know I might even get a bunch of flowers and if I am really lucky we'll take a trip out to my favourite place for afternoon tea.

I am so thankful that my own Mum saw my three daughters - she was just thrilled to be a grandmother - but sadly she passed away due to a stroke when they were very small - in fact the twins were not even a year old. My husband was with my Mum when she first suffered a  transient ischemic attack (T.I.A.) and just a few weeks later she passed away due to a stroke.

A number of my family have been affected by a TIA and have passed away with strokes so I am thrilled to see that this week is the first week that recognises National Stoke Week for the first time in Ireland.

A transient ischemic attack (TIA) is an episode in which a person has stroke-like symptoms for up to 1-2 hours. A TIA is often considered a warning sign that a true stroke may happen in the future if something is not done to prevent it.

You can follow Stroke Ireland on Twitter and on Facebook. There are also a series of events that are taking place throught the country.

The Irish Heart Foundation  is the organisation behind National Stroke Week.

You might have seen the TV campaign in 2010 called the Stroke Action F.A.S.T. campaign to build awareness of the warning signs of stroke so as to aid in the prevention of stroke. Here is a reminder:

F – Face – has their face fallen on one side?  Can they smile?

A – Arms – Can they raise both arms and keep them there?

S – Speech – is their speech slurred?

T –Time to call 999 if you spot any single one of these signs.

I hope you never need to contact the emergency services as a friend or family member is suffering a stroke, and am thankful to the Irish Heart Foundation for the initiative they are taking to build awareness.

Here is an interesting project in support of Autism charities across the globe - The Communication Shutdown planned for 1 November 2010.

The campaign is encouraging users of social edia to make a donation and encourage them to support opting out of Facebook and Twitter for the day - therefore raising funds and awareness of autism across the globe.

Signing up for the campaign gives access to The Charity App (CHAPP) which will connect with a users Facebook and/or Twitter account and will place a shut down badge across your Twitter profile. Donations from US$5 upwards are being accepted by PayPal or credit card.

The Communication Shutdown was initiated by the AEIOU Foundation a non-profit in Australia which provides for early intervention therapy for children with autism. The website for the Communication Shutdown initiative also lists their global partners for the event.

I am personally not sure that I will register for the campaign - I will be delivering a programme on that day and will need to use Facebook and Twitter in the programme. And you might feel the same or have good business reasons to use Facebook and Twitter on the 1 November - so whether or not you decide to formally participate in the Communication Shutdown perhaps you might consider donating to your local charity for autism.

Find out more about the programme online at the Communication Shutdown website and follow them on Twitter.