Breaking Down Barriers

Host David Ponraj is joined by Matt Wagner, Chief Program Officer at Main Street America, a network of more than 1,200 neighborhoods and communities, rural and urban, that share a commitment to building stronger communities through preservation-based economic development. Wagner shares their work to promote entrepreneurial Main Streets across the country. Learn more about Matt's work at: www.mains...

"Small businesses are the people in our communities." At the Southeast Kentucky Economic Development Corporation (SKED), Amanda Kelly fosters entrepreneurship in one of the country's most impoverished regions. She leads Be Boss Online, the innovative 26-step digital marketing curriculum she created to bring small businesses in Appalachia to a global stage. She joins host, David Ponraj, in a candid...

Host David Ponraj is joined by Ilana Preuss. Preuss is the author of the new book Recast Your City: How to Save Your Downtown with Small-Scale Manufacturing (Island Press , 202 1). She explains how local leaders can revitalize their downtowns by supporting small-scale manufacturing, thereby providing local business ownership opportunities and well-paying jobs. Get details about the book at:  ...

This week David Ponraj talks to Craig MacMullin, President & CEO of CEED, the Centre for Entrepreneurship Education and Development in Nova Scotia. The two dig into the 25-year evolution of CEED in shaping the entrepreneurial culture for Atlantic Canada. They explore the journey of today's entrepreneur and role that CEED has played in increasing the number of entrepreneurs operating in Nova Sc...

This week, Startup Space founder, David Ponraj, is joined by Joe Kapp, President and cofounder of the National Center for Resource Development (NCRD), a national nonprofit that helps foundations, nonprofits, higher education institutions and others achieve greater impact by developing resources to more effectively execute their missions. The two discuss how entrepreneurship can become more ac...

Join in as Startup Space founder, David Ponraj, catches up with Dr. Sridhar Sundaram at the University of South Floria. Sundaram gives insight into the programs and partnerships that have come to bridge the institution and the surrounding St. Petersburg/Tampa Bay community, which is now Florida's fastest growing tech hub and the 8th fastest growing city in America. He explains how ecosystem builde...

Startup Space founder David Ponraj is joined by Todd Connor, founder of Bunker Labs , a national organization with chapters in 30 states which helps entrepreneurs with military backgrounds start their own business. Connor is the author of the new book, Third Shift Entrepreneur. He shares his insights what it takes to derisk and foster "entrepreneurship for the rest of us." To learn more about Todd...

Join us as we discuss ecosystem building and breaking down barriers with Jessica Erickson, President and CEO of the Longmont Economic Development Partnership, and get insights into the partnership's approach to building an economic ecosystem that champions businesses and their owners. Longmont, Colorado, is a community of 98,000 on the edge of metro Denver and was named the #1 boomtown in the...

Join us as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Anika Horn, founder of Social Venturers, a space that provides ecosystem builders with the insights, resources and peer community to build purpose-driven careers and lead sustainable lifestyles. To learn more about Anika's work, please visit: www.socialventurers.com www.anikahorn.com You can find out more about Startup Space...

Join us as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Troy Vosseller, Co-Founder of gener8tor. gener8tor operates more than 45 accelerators annually across North America, working with more than 200 startups per year. To learn more about Troy's work, please visit: https://www.gener8tor.com/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace.us/

Join us as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Martha Bentley, Director of Economic Development Coordination at the State of Maine's Department of Economic And Community Development. To learn more about Martha's work, please visit: https://www.maine.gov/decd/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace.us/

Join us as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Doug Erwin, Senior Vice President of Entrepreneurial Development at EDAWN, the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada. To learn more about Doug's work, please visit: https://www.edawn.org/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace.us/

Join us for our season two premiere as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Pamela Lewis, Executive Director of New Economy Initiative, a philanthropy-led entrepreneurial development strategy working to build an inclusive network of support for entrepreneurs and small businesses in southeast Michigan. To learn more about Pam's work, please visit: https://neweconomyinitiati...

For our season finale, hear from the Startup Space team on why they're passionate about entrepreneurship and discuss their experiences with breaking down barriers. To learn more, visit: https://www.startupspace.us See you next season!

Join us for our sixteenth episode as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Meg Steuer, Manager of Forge North, an entrepreneurship initiative of the Greater MSP Partnership. To learn more about Meg's work, please visit: http://forgenorth.com/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace.us/

Join us for our fifteenth episode as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Ken Evans, Managing Director of the Tech Accelerator Program at Tampa Bay Innovation Center. To learn more about Ken's work, please visit: https://tbinnovates.com/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace.us/

Join us for our thirteenth episode as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Y. Elaine Rasmussen, Founder and CEO of Social Impact Strategies Group (SISG). To learn more about Elaine's work, please visit: https://www.socialimpactnow.com/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace.us/

Join us for our twelfth episode as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with John Wensveen, Chief Innovation Officer at Nova Southeastern University and Executive Director of the Alan B. Levan NSU Broward Center of Innovation. To learn more about John's work, please visit: https://www.nova.edu/innovation/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace....

Join us for our twelfth episode as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Courtney Zaugg, Founder and CEO of Plaka + Associates. To learn more about Courtney's work, please visit: https://www.plakaassociates.com/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace.us/

Join us for our eleventh episode as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Josh Mejia, Executive Director at the Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation (BCIC). To learn more about Josh and his work, visit: https://brownsvilleedc.org/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace.us/

Join us for our tenth episode as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Shelly Bell, founder of Black Girl Ventures. To learn more about Shelly and her work, visit: https://www.blackgirlventures.org/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace.us/

Join us for our ninth episode as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Dia Ghosh, an Entrepreneurship Specialist at the Ada Jobs Foundation To learn more about Dia and her work, visit: http://growada.com/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace.us/

Join us for our eighth episode as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Andy Gold and Beth Kerly, co-creators of Operation Startup at Hillsborough Community College. To learn more about Operation Startup and InLab at Hillsborough Community College visit: https://www.hccfl.edu/academics/inlabhcc You can check out their Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/InLabAtHCC Yo...

Join us for our seventh episode as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Sammy Ortiz, the Founder of Young Entrepreneur Students (YES). To learn more about Sammy and his work visit: https://www.youngentrepreneurialstudents.org/ You can find out more about Startup Space here: https://www.startupspace.us/

Join us for our sixth episode as we discuss ecosystem builders and breaking down barriers with Victor Hwang, Founder and CEO of Right To Start. To learn more about Victor and his work visit: https://www.righttostart.org/ You can find Victor's "We Are All Starters" manifesto here: https://www.righttostart.org/download To find out more about The Rainforest Book, visit: http://therainforestbook.com/...