Letter of Intent
Estimated Amount to be requested from the CSF: 
$500
Letter of Intent: 

On April 21st Earth Club, in partnership with The Office of Sustainability and Ecoreps, is hosting The Earth Day Festival on Red Square from 11-2pm. The Earth Day Planning Committee has been searching for a band to play at our event. We believe that art is essential to the activism surrounding sustainability movements and often functions as a catalyst for engagement. In our search for a band, we focused our efforts on finding local UW student ensembles. Supporting the sustainability of the arts on the UW campus was an important value that helped aided our selection. We also considered that finding the right group could could help establish a precedent for collaboration for future events like the SustainableUW Festival. From the groups we looked at, our committee has identified the UW’s Improvised Music Project as an outstanding student organization that upholds many of our values and goals.

The IMP is an RSO run by Jazz students. The group focuses on bringing together musicians seeking to both advance their artwork and education. The IMP gives students an opportunity to: collaborate with each other, perform their music at local venues, play in a variety of organized ensembles, and to learn from professionals brought in by the RSO. The group consists of general members and several officers which organize events, and student ensembles. The shows played by IMP ensembles are free events where donation are accepted. Donations collected by the IMP are put into a fund that is used to bring touring professional musicians to the UW. The musicians then perform for the IMP and answer questions about their artwork.

The Earth Day Committee has been in contact with two of the IMP officers, Brendan McGovern and Schuyler Asplin. The two officers have agreed to organize an ensemble to perform at our Earth Day festival. The ensemble will consist of 6-10 performers. In addition to Brendan and Schuyler organizing the ensemble, the ensemble will be responsible for set up (15min), the performance (30min), and break down (15 min). As fair payment for for their performance, we want to award the group $50 for every performer erring on the side of 10 performers. In total, this application is asking for a grant of $500, payable to either Brendan or Schuyler, for the organization and performance of an IMP ensemble at our Earth Day Event. Brendan/Schuyler will then donate the funds into the IMP.

Addressing the CSF goals, the performance that will be funded by this grant will:

  • Impact the environment by attracting students to the Earth Day event. Music and the arts have galvanizing effects that bring people together and function as a catalyst through which activism for social and environmental issues can be fostered.
  • Support the student leadership of the Earth Day Committee who identified the IMP as an organization that will advance our goals for the Earth Day event. Additionally this grant will do more than acquire a band for Earth Day as the payment for the performance will go towards the advancement of the arts and the education of student musicians involved in the IMP. This includes supporting the student leadership of the IMP who, outreach to venues, organize ensembles, and plan events for their members in order to bring in professional musicians.
  • Increase our ability to outreach to students in the UW community. By supplying the incentive of a musical performance at Earth Day we will be able to attract a larger audience of students and expose them to the environmental message of our event.
  • Set a precedent for collaboration between the IMP and Earth Day. This sustainable relationship between the IMP and the Earth Day Planning Committee will be mutually beneficial and allow our committee to focus our efforts on enhancing other aspects of the event next year.
Contact Information
Primary Contact First & Last Name: 
Christian Laush
Email: 
ecoreps@uw.edu
Full Proposal
This will display after the CSF committee has reviewed and approved your LOI, and after you have received the link to edit your application.
Budget: 
ItemCost per ItemQuantityTotal Cost
Timeline: 
TaskTimeframeEstimated Completion Date
Year: 
Amount Awarded: 
$500
Project status: 
Completed