Hello Everyone!

If you've been paying attention to the tags that appear at the top of every email I send you, you've probably noticed that this list has not been growing very fast. Over the past six months, we've only added 33 readers. That averages out to 5.5 new readers every MONTH. And any internet-based mailing list that is only adding 5 members a month is, well, nearly comatose.
 
Meanwhile, the number of people supporting NHNE with monthly donations has fallen from 58 at the beginning of the year to 43 now.

Am I discouraged? Not too much. NHNE has been online almost 15 years now. This fact, by itself, is near miraculous. Aside from whatever divine intervention may be involved, the main reason we're still alive and kicking while almost all the other organizations that started the journey with us online have disappeared, is because we're good at identifying new trends -- and adapting.

How so?

While NHNE's News List has been slowing down, I've been investing heavily in other arenas. Primarily social networking. And the growth that is taking place in these areas is dramatic. Here are a few interesting statistics:

- I started NHNE's News List in November of 1999. In the nine and a half years since, I have gathered, formatted, and filled your inboxes with 15,816 messages. In my first six months on Twitter, I have already posted 2,239 updates! At this rate I will publish 42,541 messages on Twitter during the same time frame that I published 15,816 messages to the News List. This is significant because the ability to process and assimilate large amounts of information at increasingly rapid rates is one of criteria that determines whether or not an organization survives in cyberspace (or, for that matter, on planet Earth these days).

- While, as noted above, our News List has only gathered 33 new members over the last six months, NHNE's main Twitter feed has gathered 589 people during the same time period. On average, six new readers are being added every day now!

- Along with the impressive growth we are experiencing on Twitter, we are also being exposed to better content, more quickly and easily. In the old days, I used to be the main one tracking down the news that eventually ended up in your inbox. Now days, thanks to the connections I've made on Twitter, other well-connected people are sharing exceptional content, increasing the quality of information I send to you while streamlining the process for me.

- I have also been able to tighten up the quality of information I send to you by posting less vital information on Twitter.

- Finally, Twitter is only one of the emerging social networks I have been investing time in. I've also been working with Facebook, YouTube, Vimeo, and Ning, to name a few. Ning, in particular, has allowed me to create a bunch of social networks that support people who are interested in specific topics, such as organic gardening, permaculture, and all things integral. This supports them in their personal journeys, but it also benefits the rest of us because I regularly learn things from them that I share with you.

So where is all of this headed?

In order for NHNE to stay relevant -- in order for NHNE to continue to adapt, change, and grow -- I need some help.

Specifically, I would like to breathe new life back into this list -- and enlist your help to get a new project off the ground.

As things stand now, all the different projects I am engaged in are spread over a bunch of different news feeds, websites, and social networks. I want to build a central, user-friendly, cutting-edge hub where all these projects can come together. A one-stop source for all the news, news feeds, networks, videos, books, inspiration that I track and administer. None of NHNE's existing resources, including our main website, are able to provide the kind of architecture I need to get this project off the ground. I've located the architecture I need and, by Wednesday, will know how to use it. What I need now is money to pull all the pieces together and make it a reality.

Can you help?

I need to raise $1575.00 for the new project, and would like to find a few hearty News List subscribers to join forces with the 43 folks that are monthly donors. Both contributions are needed. If you feel the nudge to help with either one of these needs, I will be very grateful, as will all the people that benefit from your financial support.

What's in it for you?

Along with the warm feelings human beings experience when they do something nice, helping NHNE stay on the cutting-edge will help you stay there too!

Here's how to help:

To make a one-time tax-deductible donation, go here.

To become a member of NHNE's elite monthly supporters (whose donations are also tax-deductible), go here.

Like usual, I will keep all of us posted on how well this effort is going by posting tags at the top of every message I send out.

With Love & best Wishes,
David Sunfellow

P.S. A hearty thank you to every single person who has supported NHNE over the years, especially those of you who have been supporting NHNE through monthly donations! I'm VERY grateful!