It’s happening! Non-profits, ngo’s, orphanages and everyone else are starting to notice the power of social media. However, they’re not the only ones who should be paying attention to these new forms of media. You should! Social media is transforming small do it yourself projects into global movements. Now you don’t have to wait on someone else to solve the woes in your community or any other issue that touches you because do it yourself philanthopy (DIY Philanthropy) has never been easier. For people interested in starting their on project I will be writing articles to help guide you through the process. For others who are curious about what causes are out there I will do my best to connect you with them. Lets starts with some social media success stories and then move to #followfriday.

From Twestival giving hard to reach places fresh water, to the use of the site Alex Brown Racing to push the cause of the welfare of horses (I’ve posted an interview with Alex below) there are countless examples of the ways great causes have now found a renewed voice online. And you don’t have to take my word for it because Mashable has already crunched the numbers.

Do you have a cause yet? What project are you working on? Are you using social media to get people interested? Are you following change makers on twitter? I’d be glad to recommend a few:

1 @TannersDad A dad fighting for the truth about autism
2 @Causecast Site where you can get connected quickly
3 @Perthtones A guy with a soft spot for refugees
4 @Wine_to_water Wine to water project
5 Link: Twit-face, The house that twitter and facebook built.

This list could go on for days, but I will instead limit it to five causes and depend you to look back at the previous follow friday posts for more great people. Don’t forget the Alex Brown video below.

Take some great tips from Alex Brown and use them as examples of how to grow your cause. ~Dwight