Entrepreneurship (Urban & Rural)

This focus area manifests itself in an effort to support small businesses and individuals through business acceleration, start-up, and incubation. Other means include: transferring our technology out of the laboratories and into the community; assuring adequate access to capital (loans, equity, venture capital), and state and local resources; providing accessible wet and dry-lab space, and tools for prototyping via maker spaces. Finally, and importantly, the region supports new and growing businesses by assuring that the talent pipeline matches the needs of those growing enterprises. 

The central belief with entrepreneurship is that we can harness our ingenuity and talent to create businesses that will provide purpose and meaning to the community, and in the meantime create jobs and economic mobility. However, some of our communities and segments of our population have experienced barriers to becoming and participating as entrepreneurs. Some of the issues stem from location barriers (rural vs. urban), and others from demographics (race, gender, class, etc). An important consideration when practicing Inclusive Entrepreneurship is to develop support programs that mirror our communities. 

Supporting entrepreneurs means supporting the footloose “Gig workers” jumping from job to job to gain experience in a wide variety of fields but not wedded to one employer. Gig workers are found in the film industry, Information Technology, artisan manufacturing, construction, etc. Rural communities embrace entrepreneurship as it provides new, creative revenue streams and because it provides economic diversification and a buffer against the ups and downs of incumbent industry.