Mike Wenger '09 is working to bring social networking to the volunteer community. With a team of Colgate students, faculty, and alumni, Wenger is creating www.collaboraid.org, a website that will help volunteers, nonprofit organizations, and indigenous stakeholders collaborate online.

The site is Wenger's solution to a problem he uncovered when volunteering in Africa over two summers. He observed that despite best intentions and the proximity of aid organizations, they don't always have the means to share information, often leading to a duplication of efforts.

The Upstate Institute Student Philanthropy Council (SPC) at Colgate University has awarded three nonprofit organizations in central New York grants totaling $10,000.

The SPC is a service-learning program composed of twelve Colgate sophomores.

This year's grant money will support initiatives that enhance the personal and life skills development for underserved populations in the community.

Yee-Ann Cho '90 manages a $200 million portfolio for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the world's largest philanthropic foundation with $60 billion in resources.

The big numbers boggle the mind, and the grants awarded by the foundation have a big-time impact.

Cho, though, also recognizes the power a $2,000 grant can possess, and how similar the process can be for awarding a grant that size or one with lots more zeros.