Hi Reddit! It’s u/Go_JasonWaterfalls, VP of Community here at Reddit. You may remember hearing from me in r/reddit’s very first [test] post, which you hopefully ignored. I’m happy to be back today for an exciting occasion… the one-year anniversary of Community Funds. Oh, how time flies.

Just a year ago, we formally announced the launch of Community Funds alongside a $1 million commitment to bring community passions and ideas to life. Since then, you’ve made magic happen with this one-of-a-kind program, from fundraising for local food banks to creating an art gallery exhibition.

We’re excited to recap some program highlights, celebrate all of the communities and redditors who have participated, and answer your questions about all things Community Funds.

Community Funds by the Numbers:

• 114 applications received
• 14 proposals funded (and 14 more being considered)
• $156,162 in funding disbursed
• 10 million redditors engage in these funded communities
• 6 countries represented across these initiatives, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Australia, and Germany

Reddit's Community Funds Program

Here’s what these folks have been up to recently with Community Funds:

• r/constructedadventures hosted an IRL and virtual puzzle adventure, involving their community during every step of the game construction and puzzle-solving fun.
• r/alberta partnered with other Canada-based subreddits to raise funds for local food banks. Together with Community Funds, they raised $54,055.69 CAD.
• r/kpop is celebrating the winners of their Queendom tournament by gifting them albums from participating bands.
• r/brasil hosted an AMA with author Carol Bensimon after sharing her books, O Clube dos Jardineiros de Fumaça and Diorama, with members of their community.
• r/snackexchange is facilitating delicious snack exchanges from across the globe for 40 of its community members.
• r/dankchristianmemes and the Dank Charity Alliance joined forces to make memes and support St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. Together with Community Funds, they raised $25,586 USD.
• r/povertyfinance shared the ins and outs of their Community Funds initiative to giveaway 500 Costco memberships in their community. The highlights include: u/AMothraDayInParadise sharing their journey to becoming a mod of r/povertyfinance, meeting a fellow redditor in person to give them their membership, and all the logistics learned along the path to delivering the memberships to redditors in the UK, US, and Canada.

Close-ups on Community Funds:

Receiving funds at the end of 2022, r/brisbane kicked off the new year with an in-person gallery exhibition featuring their members’ Brisbane-inspired artwork. Several elements made this event successful, including a People’s Choice award for the most-voted piece of art (u/femlocks received the award), and an in-person art auction with all proceeds donated to a local charity.

r/brisbane Reddit Community Funds Highlight

Who could possibly forget when r/NASCAR printed 1,400 of their community members’ names on Ryan Vargas’ racecar for a ride-along around Talladega Superspeedway? Snoo tagged along, Ryan hosted an AMA leading up to the race, and the community has continued to brainstorm ways to come together around their love of NASCAR.

r/nascar Reddit Community Funds Highlight

In 2021, r/bangtan put out the ultimate BTS fan challenge: design a billboard to be displayed in NYC and LA that celebrates the K-pop group Bangtan Boys. In collaboration with r/kpop, the response from designers, artists, and the BTS army was even more massive than the final billboards that appeared IRL.

r/bangtan Reddit Community Funds Highlight

Reflecting on one year and a surprise AMA!

A big, big thank you to all of the mods who have applied through the program and created high-value experiences that have built more connection and belonging between members in their communities. Since the official program launch, this includes: r/alberta, r/constructedadventures, r/dankchristianmemes and the Dank Charity Alliance, r/kpop, r/brasil, r/snackexchange, r/RandomActsOfGaming, r/handarbeiten, r/nascar, r/Brisbane, r/povertyfinance, r/LOTR_on_Prime, r/analog, and r/SantasLittleHelpers. (And shoutout to all of the communities that participated in the pilot phase, too.)

It’s been so cool to see the real-world value that communities have created with support from this program and we know that you’re inspiring others as community members, moderators, and organizers.

I’m sticking around for a bit to answer your questions about all things Community Funds – whether you’re curious about how the program started or how you can participate. And I’m always happy to chat about what community means to us at Reddit and why. AMA!

edit: formatting