I'm up in New York (way up, at 207th st.) at the Games for Change conference. A number of interesting things to report from the conference, which I'll do in the coming days.

For now, I want to catch up on a couple of funding opportunities for students, both directly related to the topics that interest you, our stalwart readers.

The first comes from MTVu, a new university-targeted MTV network that will be distributed exclusively online. Stephen Friedman, the general manager of MTVu, was here at Games for Change to explain the contest. He echoed come sentiments Gonzalo has said in the past: videogames are among the principal medium of youth culture, and MTV wants to help reinvent activism for a new generation. As part of this project, they have announced a contest to design a videogame to build awareness about genocide in Darfur, Sudan. The network is offering a $50,000 prize to the winning student or student team, a significant sum.

The second comes from the USC Center on Public Diplomacy (at the Annenberg School for Communication), which has announced a competition to develop a game that promotes international goodwill toward the United States. The winner will be announced during next year's E3 conference; winners will receive as much as $5,000 cash and a trip to LA to meet with industry luminaries to discuss their ideas. The contest is sponsored by the Richard Lounsbery Foundation.