Blogworld Expo’s Cause/Activism track

I‘m flying to Las Vegas early Thursday to moderate a panel on social media tools for nonprofits at Blogworld Expo. I know a lot of the keynoters: Laura Fitton, Chris Brogan, Jeremiah Owyang, Brian Solis, Kara Swisher, Scott Monty, Jay Rosen, Leo Laporte, Guy Kawasaki — the list goes on.

This is the first year the Expo has added a Cause/Activism track geared toward nonprofits, and it’s a welcome addition. The track, organized by Casemedia Group and funded by eBay, aims to provide a forum for nonprofits and bloggers to learn more about how to use social media to spread awareness and raise funds.

eBay and PayPal are sponsoring a Charity Smackdown Arcade at the show, allowing 10 charities to attend the show for free and be featured in the Arcade. The top 10 voter getters were Alex’s Lemonade (2,817 votes), Best Friends Animal Society (2,652), Surfrider Foundation (2,189), Mothers Fighting For Others (2,063), Spirit Jump (1,658), LA’s Best (1,475), 3for5 Foundation (1,466), Stepwise (1,303 votes), Heifer International Portland (1,152) and Canine Companions for Independence (1,143).

Blogworld still hasn’t updated its (badly designed) schedule — even though the Expo starts tomorrow — so here are the latest details on the nonprofit track:

All cause sessions are on Thursday, Oct. 15, in the Las Vegas Convention Center’s eBay PayPal Pavilion, Room 219

Tools for Nonprofit Organizations

When: 11am to 12:15pm (time change)

Topic: What social tools are out there to help organizations raise awareness about social causes? How can we use those tools to generate support and raise money? What strategies should nonprofits use to recruit members, evangelize causes and advance their missions?

Panelists:

Judy Chang, Paypal
Justin Perkins, Care2
David Levy, SocialVibe
James Sutandyo, Causecast
Scott Henderson, Media Sauce
JD Lasica, Socialbrite.org, moderator

Kick Cancer’s Ass

When: 10-11am

Topic: We all want caner gone. The panelists will talk about how they’ve built proactive communities that are passionate about kicking cancer’s ass.

Panelists:

Drew Olanoff, Blame Drew’s Cancer
Natalie Lent, Stand Up 2 Cancer/ ID PR
Meaghan Edelstein, Spirit Jump
Jay Scott, Alex’s Lemonade Stand
Christine Lu, moderator

Online locally, acting globally

When: 1:30-2:45pm

Topic: There are no small towns online. One click literally connects you with a worldwide audience you can reach and inspire. The panelists will talk about how they’ve shared their passion with others and made a global impact using basic social media tools

Panelists:

Amanda Rose, Twestival
Cameron Sinclair, Architecture for Humanity.
Andy Sternberg, Live Earth
Robert Chatwani, EBay, Director of Global Citizenship
Jess McCarter, Samasource
Shira Lazar, moderator

Making America Less Invisible: Homelessness in America

4-5 pm, A special session with Mark HorvathThursdayJD Lasica, founder and former editor of Socialbrite, is co-founder of Cruiseable. Contact JD or follow him on Twitter or Google Plus.