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Crowdfund �ٺ���Ƶ returns Saturday (Oct. 1) with 26 teams of students, faculty and staff seeking donations of any size for programs and services that strengthen the �ٺ���Ƶ community and our impact on the world.

The October cohort offers funding opportunities representing a wide range of passions and interests, from providing hands-on research opportunities for students and supporting student clubs to broadening diversity, equity and inclusion across campus, addressing climate change, helping students and staff with emergency needs and more.

One project seeks to improve the health and safety of farmworkers — who labor in one of the nation’s most dangerous occupations, — through a new internship program providing undergraduates with training, resources and opportunities to engage with farmworker communities about health and safety issues. Cultivating Future Agricultural Health and Safety Leaders, run by staff at the Western Center for Agricultural Health and Safety, will offer these internships to many first-generation college students from farmworker families.

In another project, Improving Climate Data Communications, students from ModLab, the Digital Humanities Laboratory, will work with climate researchers to develop a white paper detailing best practices for informing and interacting with the public about climate change.

SUDS AND SCHOLARS

• WHEN: 5-8 p.m. Thursday (Sept. 29)
• WHERE: Sudwerk Brewing Co. ()
• WHAT: A kickoff event with live music, plus beer and food for sale. The brewery will donate a portion of proceeds to the Tapping Potential Fund.

October also sees the return of such popular Crowdfund projects as the Tapping Potential Scholarship (formerly called “Pour It Forward”), which seeks to increase socioeconomic diversity in the brewing industry by offering scholarships to the in Continuing and Professional Education, and the Department of Political Science Diversity Award, offering scholarships to graduate students from underrepresented communities to support their summer research.

takes place in October and February each year, and since its debut in February 2020 has raised more than $427,400 for 100 participating teams. In February 2022, its most recent outing, 28 teams raised more than $93,800.

“Crowdfund �ٺ���Ƶ is here to stay,” said Michelle Poesy, executive director of the Annual and Special Gifts Program in Development and Alumni Relations, which runs the program. “Students, faculty and staff are excited by the opportunity to raise money for their projects, and we’re seeing some of them return for additional rounds of Crowdfund.” Teams may participate multiple times in Crowdfund �ٺ���Ƶ, but only once each academic year.

The Annual and Special Gifts Program, in cooperation with Advancement Services, reviews applications and provides the Crowdfund �ٺ���Ƶ platform, training, guidance and some publicity — but it’s up to project teams to fuel the marketing and networking that lead to fundraising success.

The application period for the February 2023 cohort opens Nov. 1.