Guest blog post by Pamela Acosta Marquardt, Founder and Director of Donor Relations of Pancreatic Cancer Action Network

We tend to think of data as merely the facts and figures that represent our cause. But when taken and wrapped in our passionate stories, that data becomes an emotional pitch by which we engage others.

Stories have served many purposes over time. Some stories help record history. Some create timelines. Others serve to engage their listeners in a way that compels them to action. Those are the stories that we must become masters at telling. We need to become experts at sharing our causes in such a personal and passionate way that our audiences recognize opportunities to become heroes and feel compelled to take steps to make a difference. I use my story to make the data compelling and actionable to the audiences I’m trying to reach.

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In Diana's blog, read a Q&A with Luz Vega-Marquis, president and CEO of the Marguerite Casey Foundation.

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Guest Post by Dan Siroker, Co-Founder & CEO, Optimizely, Inc.

Data has gone Big. The last year has seen explosive growth in the amount of new data created and has brought into the mainstream the reality of our ever-growing, globally connected digital world.
Last year, an IDC and EMC study projected 1.8 zettabytes of data were expected to be created and replicated in 2011. For some perspective, as Mashable published, this is equivalent to 57.5 billion 32GB iPads packed full of data (which evidently could be stacked to 25 times as high as Mt. Fuji). Needless to say, it’s easy to get overwhelmed.

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What do Isadora Duncan, Steve Jobs, Maya Angelou and Ansel Adams have in common?

They were all hall of fame level game-changers and each one called the San Francisco Bay Area home.

This year we've embraced GameChangers as the theme for the 2012 IS Annual Conference and are thrilled to call the Hilton San Francisco Union Square our home for Veterans Day weekend, November 11 & 12.

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Guest Post by David Kroodsma

Anyone poking around online newspapers has noticed a proliferation of info-graphics and maps. If these graphics are done well, they can tell a story much more quickly than a series of paragraphs. Introducing data journalism – the newest form of online communication, and also a great way to get eyeballs on your website. For much of 2011, I worked as a data journalist for Climate Central, where I attempted to tell stories about climate change and energy through both articles and data-driven graphics.

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