Great reads from around the web on July 18th

I come across so many great conversations, ideas, and resources all over the web every day. Here are some of the most interesting things I’ve found recently (as of July 18th). You can join the conversations in the comments, or click through to the original posts to find what others are saying.

To follow more of the things I find online, you can follow @amysampleward on Twitter (which is just a blog and resource feed), or find me on Delicious (for all kinds of bookmarks).

• Mapping Trends in Philanthropy « NathanielJames.org – "Philanthropy is changing, and I want to contribute to creating the best of all possible worlds for the social sector. Today, I’m launching a series on Mapping Trends in Philanthropy, to share what I am learning and invite a conversation with leaders in the field. Today, I’ll start with a basic taxonomy of these trends, and unpack each one over time. All of these trends are interdependent, often reinforcing the others, so as I approach the end, I hope to synthesize them into some working hypotheses and best practices for social impact leverage."
• International Digital Youth Work Events, 20th-23rd Sep – What can you share? What can you learn? « Online Youth Outreach – "Online Youth Outreach (@Katie_bacon) was contacted by Judith from the Hong Kong Council of Social Service http://www.hkcss.org.hk/ They have been able to source some limited funding for a group of 12 youth practitioners to travel to the UK to learn more about digital youth work practice. Feel free to suggest activities, we can alter and modify this programme according to the people and organisations who want to join in. To keep posted, share ideas and promote through your networks:Twitter #tag for this upcoming visit will be #incgen11 or Email cy@hkcss.org.hk or info@katiebacon.co.uk"
• Report Release: The 2011 NTEN Community Survey Report | NTEN – "The Nonprofit Technology Network (NTEN) conducts an annual Community Survey to find out more about the individuals and organizations in the NTEN community: we want to find out how these individuals and organizations use technology in their work, gauge the impact of NTEN programs and services on their professional development and their organization’s missions, and track trends in the nonprofit technology community over time."
• Google Introduces Facebook Competitor, Emphasizing Privacy – NYTimes.com – "Google took its biggest leap yet onto Facebook’s turf on Tuesday, introducing a social networking service called the Google+ project — which happens to look very much like Facebook… But the Google+ project will be different from Facebook in one significant way, which Google hopes will be enough to convince people to use yet another social networking service. It is designed for sharing with small groups — like colleagues, college roommates or hiking friends — instead of with all of a user’s friends or the entire Web. It also offers group text messaging and video chat."
• More Than 90% of Foundations Use Social Media – Social Philanthropy – The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas – "Foundations may sometimes be viewed as out of touch with new technology, but 93 percent of foundations use social networks, according to a new survey of the people who handle communications for the nation’s foundations.<br />
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  Forty-four percent of communications staff members said they spend up to 10 percent of their time “posting content, interacting with audiences through interactive media, adapting content, producing media, and developing new-media campaigns.”"