UCalgary launches its own funding platform to help students, faculty turn ideas into reality

Christian Emond, left, and Sebastian Alvarez were involved in one of the first research groups to use the University of Calgary’s crowdfunding platform. (Helen Pike/CBC)

The University of Calgary has launched its own funding platform, UCalgary Crowdfund, to help faculty, students, alumni, and staff fund their projects. The platform allows eligible applicants to submit a project online, and once approved, the team behind the pitch has 30 days to raise funds via the platform. Unlike other funding platforms, UCalgary Crowdfund presents less risk to participants, as all money raised goes to the projects—even if goals are not met—and UCalgary does not take a cut of the money raised to run the platform. “If we’re asking people to be entrepreneurial, we need to give them the tools that they need to be successful, and this is an important one,” said UCalgary Associate VP for Alumni Engagement Michael Sclafani.