Recorded live from the Technical.ly Builders Conference in Philadelphia, this bonus episode of Ecosystem, Scale! explores an increasingly important layer of startup community infrastructure:

Narrative.

Joined by Chris Wink, cofounder and CEO of Technical.ly, Aaron Taylor examines how storytelling, media, and ecosystem identity shape the trajectory of startup communities.

Throughout the conversation, Chris argues that startup communities are not simply built through programs, capital, or institutions alone — but through the ongoing process of helping communities understand themselves and communicate that identity outward.

Together, they explore how startup communities often generate significant activity without developing the shared narrative needed to make that momentum legible to founders, institutions, and capital. Using Philadelphia as a case study, the conversation examines storytelling as a form of ecosystem infrastructure — one shaped through media, openness, founder density, and ongoing community participation rather than centralized control. The episode also unpacks the tensions between traditional economic development and ecosystem-building, why this work still struggles for institutional legitimacy, and why startup communities ultimately operate as an “infinite game” requiring continuous coordination, visibility, and reinvention.

About the Speaker

Chris Wink is the cofounder and CEO of Technical.ly, a media organization focused on connecting and strengthening startup and technology communities through journalism, events, and ecosystem storytelling. For nearly two decades, Technical.ly has examined how entrepreneurial ecosystems emerge, evolve, and communicate their identity across regions.

Connect with him here: https://www.christopherwink.com/; linkedin.com/in/christopherwink

Resources:

https://technical.ly/

This bonus episode of Ecosystem, Scale! is a step out of the usual.

Instead of a structured conversation, this is a more open reflection — on the season, the patterns that emerged, and the shift from building within startup communities to thinking more deeply about the structures that shape them.

Aaron sits down with guest host, Alexandria Taylor, to share his journey in ecosystem work, what he’s been learning through these conversations, and the evolving lens he’s bringing to the field.

It’s less about answers . . . and more about how the questions are changing.

If you’ve been following along this season, this episode offers a more personal look at the thinking behind Ecosystem, Scale! — and where it may be heading next.

Thank you to all of our listeners for a momentous Season 1!!!!!

About Our Host

Aaron Taylor is a startup attorney, ecosystem architect, and the host of Ecosystem, Scale! — a platform at the intersection of founders, institutions, and the systems that connect them.

Aaron’s work spans legal advisory, venture engagement, and startup community-building, where he has led initiatives, advised founders, and worked alongside institutions to strengthen how startup communities function and produce outcomes. His approach is rooted in identifying the structural gaps that limit progress and designing the infrastructure mechanisms that allow ecosystems to operate more effectively.

Through Ecosystem, Scale!, Aaron is contributing to the emergence of ecosystem building as a field — surfacing patterns, translating across stakeholders, and helping define the frameworks that allow startup communities to function with greater clarity, alignment, and impact.

Connect with him here: linkedin.com/in/aaron-d-taylor

Connect with guest host Alexandria Taylor here: linkedin.com/in/alexandria-taylor-2ab815199

In the Season 1 finale of Ecosystem, Scale!, Aaron Taylor sits down with Andy Stoll, founding Executive Director of the ESHIP Alliance, for a wide-angle conversation about the emergence of entrepreneurial ecosystem building as a field of practice.

Over the past two decades, ecosystem builders across the country have been quietly working to strengthen the environments where founders turn ideas into reality. What began as scattered community efforts is now beginning to organize into something larger: a professional field with its own practices, leadership models, and support structures.

Andy offers an eagle-eye view of this movement zooming out to examine the national landscape of ecosystem building while also reflecting on the culture, relationships, and leadership required to make these communities thrive in practice.

At its core, ecosystem building is a team sport a collaborative effort to move knowledge and resources from the people who have them to the entrepreneurs who need them at the right moment.

This conversation closes the first season of Ecosystem, Scale! by zooming out to ask a bigger question:

What happens when the builders themselves begin to organize into a field?

About Our Speaker

Andy Stoll is a serial social entrepreneur and the founding Executive Director of the ESHIP Alliance, a national initiative working to advance entrepreneurial ecosystem building as a recognized profession and coordinated field. Over the past two decades, Andy has co-founded multiple social change organizations and helped pioneer community-driven approaches to entrepreneurship, innovation, and economic development.

Previously, Andy served as a Senior Program Officer at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, where he helped advance entrepreneur-led economic development and ecosystem building as an emerging practice. His work focuses on participatory, network-based approaches to social change that combine entrepreneurship, storytelling, culture-building, and community leadership.

Andy is a sought-after speaker and facilitator who has appeared at SXSW, TEDx events, universities, and conferences around the world, and his work has been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal.

Connect with him here: linkedin.com/in/andystoll

Resources:

https://www.kauffman.org/ecosystem-playbook-draft-3/eship-goals/

https://eship-commons.mn.co/spaces/18645947/feed

https://www.startupchampions.co/

https://www.seedthesouth.com/

$50 off code for Seed the South Capital Summit: STS26-CEDAR-50

Higher education is often described as an anchor institution in innovation ecosystems—but what does that really mean in practice?

In this episode of Ecosystem, Scale!, Aaron Taylor is joined by Almesha Campbell, Vice President for Research and Economic Development at Jackson State University, and Jim Woodell, Founder of Venn Collaborative and co-creator of the CCube framework, for a comprehensive, real-world conversation about the evolving role of universities in startup communities and regional innovation ecosystems.

Together, they share how higher education institutions can move beyond symbolic participation to become active, trusted contributors to ecosystem growth. The conversation examines the language gaps, cultural barriers, and internal flows that often slow collaboration—while also highlighting the immense and underutilized assets universities bring to founders, entrepreneurs, and communities.

Key themes include:

• What it truly means for universities to function as anchor institutions
• Why transparency, trust, and shared language matter more than programs alone
• How structured conversations can unlock collaboration across silos
• The shift from transactional partnerships to sustained, network-based ecosystems
• Why a “boundaryless mindset” is essential for long-term ecosystem resilience

This episode is essential listening for founders, ecosystem builders, higher education leaders, economic developers, and policymakers seeking to better understand how universities fit into the broader innovation landscape—and how to engage them more effectively.

Rather than offering quick fixes, this conversation invites listeners to rethink collaboration as a shared responsibility built on relationships, contribution, and intentional design.

About the Speakers

Almesha Campbell is the immediate past Chairwoman of AUTM and Vice President for Research and Economic Development at Jackson State University, where she bridges research, innovation, and community impact. With deep experience in advancing institutional collaboration and inclusive ecosystem engagement, Almesha focuses on aligning university assets—talent, research, and infrastructure—with regional innovation priorities and community needs.

Connect with her here: linkedin.com/in/almeshalcampbell

Jim Woodell Jim Woodell is the founder of Venn Collaborative, a partnership-focused consultancy that helps universities and ecosystem stakeholders improve collaboration with external partners for economic and community impact. He co-developed the CCube structured conversation framework to support alignment, shared language, and actionable strategy across diverse ecosystem actors.

Connect with him here: https://linktr.ee/JimWoodell

Resources:

https://www.ccube.tools/

https://www.ptie.org/

https://autm.net/