******************* This email originates from outside Imperial. Do not click on links and attachments unless you recognise the sender. If you trust the sender, add them to your safe senders list https://spam.ic.ac.uk/SpamConsole/Senders.aspx to disable email stamping for this address. ******************* Hi All, *tl;dr: please buy membership <https://www.imperialcollegeunion.org/shop/club-society-project-products/caving-products/30921/caving-membership-20-21> if you can. This will act as a deposit on the first trip we manage to run later in the year.* Though we will most likely not be caving as a club until spring/ summer, we very much want to remain active, and to show the union that we exist in sufficient enough numbers that they should care about us. This is a call for people who haven't done so to please buy membership. We understand and respect that people's financial situation might not be very favourable right now, and that expecting membership now in return for caving in the spring might be seen as a bit of an ask, but we have pressing reasons for asking that you buy membership <https://www.imperialcollegeunion.org/shop/club-society-project-products/caving-products/30921/caving-membership-20-21> if it is reasonable for you to do so.* The membership cost will be taken off the cost of the first trip you go on.* *Why we're asking:* The union projected a 20% decrease in their income this year, and consequently made the decision to only allow CSPs access to 25% of our grant, which was already a relatively stingy allocation compared to previous years. Another (more urgent) reason why our membership is important is that this is a significant factor when the union starts thinking about our grant allocation for next year. This is due to occur next month. To put this in perspective, we currently have 6 members, of whom 2 are new members (huge thanks to those who have already bought!), when we would typically have at least 35, with 47 last year. We have thought about our membership cost carefully and reduced it from the usual £25 to *£20*. Our reason for not reducing it further is that the union take membership cost into account when allocating grant, and advised against reducing it by more than £5. They're more likely to respect a higher membership fee as indicative of running higher-cost activities. Following last year's grant allocation they actually suggested making membership £50, in line with other clubs who require specialist equipment, but we consider this out of the question as we want the club to be accessible to as many people as possible. While for the time being we are limited to virtual events, trips in the spring and our summer expedition to Slovenia are far enough in the future that they could still happen. In addition to this, we are always open to suggestions about potential events we could hold in the case of in-person gatherings being allowed but not overnight stays/ minibuses. Day trips and hikes have already been discussed and are likely to take place when we are allowed to gather again in person. Yours 'til the union are gullible enough to give us as much grant as our hearts desire, Zaeem and Úna *ICCC Treasurer and President*