April 26, 2012 · Behind The Scenes

Students at Carnegie Mellon Launch Crowdfunding Campaigns

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We love hearing about all the different ways teachers are integrating Indiegogo and crowdfunding into their curriculums.

(You may have even read how our CEO wants kids to launch 10 startups in 10 years.)

Over at Carnegie Mellon University, the “Creative Process” course taught by Prof. Steven Dow explores tools and processes for innovating novel solutions to social concerns, such as government transparency, accessible voting, food recycling, healthier eating for kids, and home energy monitoring. As a capstone project, students launched Indiegogo crowdfunding campaigns to raise funding for their prototypes. The goal is not just to explore the possibility of getting early-early-stage funding for innovative ideas, but to get feedback and affirmation from the community.

Student campaigns currently running include:
  • Votability – A service designed to help disabled voters learn about voting locations and to arrange carpools on voting day.
  • HomeEnergyGuru – An exploration of what your smart bill will look like when every home is connected to a smart grid that more incrementally monitors energy usage.
  • Real Aware – A website service and certification board that will help identify restaurants that recycle their food waste.
  • TestTube – An application that helps everyday people find out about cool research by watching short video interviews with researchers.
  • SuperCook – A tablet-based cooking game prototype that can get kids involved in cooking healthy meals and eating healthier.
If you’re interested in learning more about the course, click here.

Keep up the great work Prof. Dow!