With $450,000 in support from Citi Microfinance, Kiva has announced the launch of Kiva U, a program designed to engage students and educators in a global effort to expand microfinance and foster community among next-generation change makers.

According to the Kiva site, the initiative aims to build, strengthen, and connect school-based microfinance clubs in the United States; develop teaching tools for experiential learning; and foster leadership among students active in social enterprise, international development, and financial inclusion. To that end, Kiva U will work to expand Kiva's network of campus-based microfinance teams by providing online and offline engagement tools; offer K-12 and college curricula that address how financial inclusion and microfinance play a role in poverty alleviation; and hold a summit meeting in October to help educators and high school and college students build community and expertise.

To kick off the initiative, Kiva U will host a contest with $30,000 in prizes in which students submit videos that address how youth can transform the world through microfinance. Five finalists will be announced and showcased at the Kiva U Summit, with the winning video to be screened at the Net Impact Conference in late October.

"Kiva U will serve as a launching pad for bringing together students and educators who are interested not only in financial inclusion as an abstract concept, but also in how they can use technology and their own resources to make personal connections with those seeking to improve their lives," said Bob Annibale, global director of Citi Microfinance. "Broad financial inclusion is dependent on large-scale efforts by the NGO sector, governments, and multinationals, but the visceral need is often most evident through the one-on-one connections forged through platforms like Kiva. With Kiva U, we are aiming to advance Kiva's existing efforts amongst students, provide the necessary tools to connect them with each other, and empower them to mobilize their peers around the meaningful act of microlending."