Fundraising Ideas

Trying to figure out a way to fund your trip to the Liberation Now! national student animal rights conference? Here are some ideas that past conference attendees have shared with us.

Ask for money. The easiest, most cost-efficient and effective way to raise money is to ask directly for it. Tell potential donors (such as your friends, family, fellow activists, colleagues, etc.) what the money is for. You may be interested in handing them a typed sheet explaining what the Liberation Now! conference and the Student Animal Rights Alliance is about and letting them know how attending the conference will help you with your activism for animals.

Go to different academic departments, student government association, or the student services office in your school. Many schools allot a certain amount of money to give to students to attend conferences.

Propose using the conference as a source for a research paper or project such as a presentation in one of your classes. This might make the department more likely to fund part of your traveling expenses.

One group of students who attended Liberation Now! last year received funding from the admissions department of their law school after offering to promote the school’s Animal Law courses, vegan-friendly cafeterias, and environmental & social advocacy programs.

Host a speaker at your school. While some schools may not have funds allocated for students to attend conferences, most have speakers funds set up. Ask a local animal rights organizer to speak at your school and ask the speaker to donate his/her honorarium to your school group to attend Liberation Now!.

Start a Spare Change Drive . Set up a table in a high traffic area with animal rights literature and ask passer-bys to contribute to your trip to the conference.

Make a local veggie resource guide. Design a small printed guide listing all the vegetarian-friendly restaurants, retailers, and grocery stores in your neighborhood and sell the guides for donations! Consider providing your own reviews and adding recipes.

Are you friends with someone in a band or owns a venue? Ask for the proceeds of an upcoming concert to be donated to your group’s trip to the conference. (It’s much more work to organize your own benefit concert.)

Throw a pie at the fast food mascot. Have someone dress up as a fast food mascot – say the bloody KFC Colonel, and have folks throw pies at the mascot for a donation.

Hold a bake sale. Bake your own cookies or ask local vegan restaurants and establishments to donate them.

Ask a local vegetarian-friendly restaurant to donate a percentage of a day’s proceeds.