Nick and Kaitlyn are taking the week off from interviews. Before signing off for the weekend, we wanted to give thanks to our listeners and let everyone know our plans for the holidays! Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Ben McDougal is a Startup Ecosystem Builder from Des Moines, Iowa. He joins the show to discuss his work welcoming diverse communities to his startup ecosystem and provides an overview of the startup scene is Des Moines. Connect with Ben here. Read more from Mug.News here.

The two hosts of the Ecosystem Builder Podcast, Nick and Kaitlyn, discuss a new show Kaitlyn has created called The Startup Spotlight Series. Watch more Startup Spotlight Series on our YouTube page here. Read more from Mug.News here.

Darcella Craven is an Ecosystem Builder from Saint Louis, Missouri. She joins the Ecosystem Builder Podcast to chat about her local community and the work she's done to support the mental health of local entrepreneurs. Read more from Mug.News here.

Nathan Preheim is a Nebraska ecosystem builder, entrepreneur, and venture capitalist. He joins the Ecosystem Builder Podcast to share his journey as an entrepreneur and the systematic flaws he plans to fix with his new VC firm. Connect with Nathan here. Read more from Mug.News here.

Angie Jordan is an Ecosystem Builder from Iowa City, Iowa. She joins the show to share her own journey as an entrepreneur and the way Iowa City's community is ensuring every entrepreneur has the chance to succeed. Read more from Mug.News here.

Maddy Fisher joins the show for this episode as an ecosystem builder from Rochester, Minnesota. She talks with Kaitlyn about technology in agriculture creating the next wave of jobs in the midwest and the work she does to help small businesses flourish in Minnesota. Kaitlyn and Abby also chat about their favorite coffee shops in the area. Read more from Mug.News here.

Nick and Kaitlyn link up to share recent updates with Mug.News and chat about their personal creative projects. Read more from Mug.News here.

Alejandro Santiago, an ecosystem builder from Saint Louis, Missouri, joins the show to share how he best advocates for entrepreneurs within his own community. Don't forget to stick around for the end of the episode to hear Kaitlyn and Nick share their biggest takeaways from this conversation! Connect with Alejandro here. Read more from Mug.News here.

The Editor-In-Chief of Startland News, Tommy Felts, is our guest for this episode of the Ecosystem Builder Podcast. Startland News is a non-profit news organization that is devoted to telling stories of startups within the Kansas City community. We discuss the impact startup storytelling has had on the Kansas City ecosystem. Connect with Tommy on LinkedIn here. Read more from Mug.News here.

In this episode, our co-host Kaitlyn chats with Melissa Grizzle to discuss building entrepreneurial education programming in Saint Louis, Missouri. Melissa gives an overview of her local startup ecosystem while providing tactics to apply to any community across the midwest. Connect with Melissa here. Read more from Mug.News here.

On today’s episode, our Host Kaitlyn chats with Amanda Lewan to discuss the startup ecosystem in Detroit, Michigan. They overview the booming industry of cyber security and highlight the other well-functioning areas of their community. Read more from Mug.News here.

Tom Chapman is a world-renown ecosystem builder from Omaha, Nebraska. As one of the first players on the ecosystem-building scene, Tom has helped establish the field as we know it today. He joins to discuss issues he sees with entrepreneurial activity across the nation and share insights from his local scene in Omaha. Read more from Mug.News here.

Jake Joraanstad is an Ecosystem Builder from Fargo, North Dakota. He joins the show to give an overview of his local ecosystem while highlighting the importance of learning from failures, also known as "Flearning." Connect with Jake on Twitter here. Read more from Mug.News here.

Nick & Kaitlyn have now created more than forty episodes of the Ecosystem Builder Podcast without ever being in the same room. Kaitlyn and Nick finally met up in person to record this podcast together, in person. Read more from Mug.News here.

Matt Menietti is an ecosystem builder from Saint Louis, Missouri. He joins the show to discuss the steps Saint Louis has taken to create a diverse environment in its startup ecosystem. He also discusses local financing options and his vision for Saint Louis post-pandemic. Read more from Mug.News here. Connect with Matt on LinkedIn here.

On this episode of the Ecosystem Builder Podcast, we have Angie Jordan, Marlén Joanne Mendoza, and Tasha Lard. The group of professionals organized Iowa City's first Diversity Market. Their event builds community and offers support amongst marginalized entrepreneurs in their ecosystem. They join the show to discuss how the event came together and the tactics other organizers can take to replicate their success elsewhere. Follow the South District Neighborhood Association in Iowa City on...

On this episode, we have Greg Tehven, an Ecosystem Builder from Fargo, North Dakota. Greg overviews the startup ecosystem in North Dakota while highlighting some of the challenges his state faces, such as access to capital and letting humility get in the way of success. Connect with Greg on LinkedIn here. Read more from Mug.News here.

Hunter Bergman is an ecosystem builder and student at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln. He joins to show to discuss building a collegiate startup community and the tactics his team implemented to engage those students with local entrepreneurs. Connect with Hunter here. Read more from Mug.News here.

Mark Cowsert is an ecosystem builder from Columbia, Missouri devoted to creating programs to teach entrepreneurship in middle and high school. Mark discusses engaging with entrepreneurs at a young age while providing an overview of his initiatives that have been brought across his state. Connect with Mark here. Read more from Mug.News here.

Jamie Sundsbak is an ecosystem builder in Rochester, Minnesota. He joins the show to discuss the partnership between the startup community in Rochester and the Mayo Clinic. Jamie also highlights the different tactics his organization has implemented to allow the Rochester startup community to flourish. Learn more about Jamie's nonprofit, Collider, here. Read more from Mug.News here.

Melissa Vincent is an Ecosystem Builder who splits time between Oklahoma City, OK, and Kansas City, MO as the Executive Director of Pipeline Entrepreneurs. She joins the show to discuss leading Pipeline's community of high-growth entrepreneurs while analyzing the current midwest ecosystem. Read more from Mug.News here.

Nick and Kaitlyn take an episode to discuss their biggest learnings on ecosystem building after almost a year of creating the show. They also touch base on their projects outside of this podcast and preview other Mug.News content. Watch the first episode of Coffe Grinds, hosted by Kaitlyn Claeys, here. Help your local donut shop win our Gold Donut Competition here.

Mike Bynum is an Ecosystem Builder from Saint Louis, Missouri. He joins the show to discuss the robust ecosystem in Saint Louis and his approach to best-supporting entrepreneurs within their community. Read more from Mug.News here. Connect with Mike here.