In looking over the news and activity of NTEN members online this week, the theme seems to be: Let's get together to make more happen.

First up, we've got an update from long-time and very active NTEN member Norman Reiss about his participation at the Aspiration-Idealware -- both long-time NTEN supporting organizations -- Managing Nonprofit Technology Projects seminar in New York. From what I've heard online and in the Twitt-o-sphere, the first conference from these folks on this topic went well, with a nice turn out of nonprofit techies from all over, including from across the pond.

Speaking of friends from Europe, NTEN members LASA and the ICT Hub are getting ready for a gathering of their own, the 2008 National Circuit Riders Conference, in Birmingham, England next month.

There's news of another gathering in NYC coming soon: the "Software Smackdown", the first meetup of 2008 for New York's NTEN 501 Tech Club, organized by the club's new cruise director, Charles Lenchner. The topics on the table include the Open API debate, open versus proprietary, free versus costly, and all the hot-button issues sure to inflame some lively discussions!

Also on the NTEN 501 Tech Club front, we're excited to see the establishment of a new club on the other side of the globe: welcome NTEN 501 Tech Club - Sydney! I hope to hear some Aussie lingo merge with our own nptech jargon over the next year as the Australians gather and share their ideas and experiences both online and offline with us.

Beth Kanter, master of getting folks organized online, leveraged her own birthday this past Friday to raise funds for her favorite cause. Beth used Twitter and and her blog, and others picked up on the well-wishing and subsequent fundraising. Happy belated Birthay, Beth!

Speaking of Beth's well-wishers, NTEN member Amy Sample-Ward is doing some social organizing of her own by helping to bring people together in Portland, Oregon. She's working with NTEN to launch a 501 Tech Club series of brown-bag lunches, as well as helping to organize NetTuesday's local meetups.

And, for a different twist on the theme, I also came across this write up on MSNBC.com about how nonprofit organizations are gathering online in Second Life -- not just for the fun of it, but to learn from each other and advocate their causes. Many NTEN member organizations are highlighted in the article, including America's Second Harvest, CARE USA, the MacArthur Foundation, and the American Cancer Society. Want to see what superstar nptechie Susan Tenby's SL avatar looks like? Check out the article here.