By David Gordon, associate editor Seventeen local nonprofit organizations were part of Tuesday’s online launch of an innovative fund-raising effort spearheaded by the Eau Claire Community Foundation (ECCF). They are participating in the first of four crowd-funding campaigns set up by the ECCF to honor its upcoming 25th anniversary. That milestone will be celebrated on June 20, 2022, some six weeks after the close of the fourth crowd-funding period. “Create Culture,” the first ECCF online “Grant Catalog,” will remain live from Tuesday through July 28. Three additional crowd-funding cycles will begin on Oct. 4 and on Feb. 7 and April 11, 2022. The ECCF will award bonus grants totaling $25,000 to the top fund-raising organizations in each cycle. Local nonprofit organizations can apply for inclusion in any of the three remaining crowd-funding cycles for projects that deal with education and training, some aspect of “Green” activities and meeting people’s basic needs. Further information is available on the ECCF’s 25th anniversary web page. To read more about this year-long ECCF project, please click on the headline.