by Chris Noble – Originally published on What Gives and republished here with the author’s permission.

There’s a lot of “activity” in social media.  More people are embracing social networks every day, and more organizations are using social channels to reach their audience. But in all this “activity”, is there any real action?  How can nonprofits and others use social media to mobilize volunteers and get things done in the real world?

That’s the question put to a panel of social media luminaries at NCVS, the National Conference on Volunteering and Service, held by HandsOn Network and Points of Light in New York City a few weeks back.  Maybe “luminaries” isn’t exactly the right word… how about superstars?  These folks have been on the front lines where social media meets social change:

, who headed up President Obama’s social media strategy and action in 2008, now Founder and Creative Director of Blue State Digital.

, Founder of Craigslist, who’s been championing social media as a way to make government more accessible, accountable and efficient.

, Co-founder and Chairman of , who has his own social venture launching in the fall.

, who, as Manager of Public Policy Communications handles some of the tougher policy and community organizing issues for on a daily basis.

We’ve got lots of coverage coming your way from NCVS over the coming weeks, including more from this group and fifth panel member, social media marketing strategist , as well as individual interviews with an incredible range of activists, CEOs, authors, and other leaders in the nonprofit space.  This segment is a great start, because these guys have some solid advice for nonprofit organizers based on real-world experience.

Not only valuable content, but actually fun to watch.  Joe does a great job describing why you should treat volunteers like gold, and how to do so in a social framework. There’s also a great analogy in there for those of you who need to explain to your parents why all this “social media stuff” is relevant to social change – just go to Craig’s Gutenberg/ Luther shtick about 5 minutes in – I’ve used it 5 or 6 times since hearing it.

Enjoy!