ECG’s Office of Economic & Community Development has assembled a range of grants and funding opportunities to assist communities in obtaining essential resources for advancing existing industries and attracting new businesses. We have compiled a selection of funding options below that could be relevant to your specific needs. Our featured opportunity is from U.S. Economic Development Association, Build to Scale Program.

Build to Scale (B2S)

Deadline: July 28, 2023

Type: Grant or Loan

The Build to Scale Program strengthens regional economies by enabling startups to start and grow through the Venture Challenge and Capital Challenge. Learn more about the FY23 funding opportunity (NOFO) (PDF) – Apply here.

EDA’s Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (OIE) leads the Build to Scale (B2S) program, which is authorized under Section 27 of the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. § 3722). Under the B2S program, EDA awards and manages a portfolio of grants designed to increase regional capacity to strengthen ecosystems that equitably and inclusively support diverse technology innovators, entrepreneurs, and startups. These regions are growing technology-driven businesses, creating high-skill, high-wage jobs, and building the industries of the future.

The Build to Scale program aims to:

• Facilitate access to knowledge, capital, and networks for entrepreneurial innovators to develop products and services using emerging technologies.
• Test and amplify new approaches for entrepreneur support organizations to create inroads for underrepresented innovators to join and create successful startup teams.
• Demonstrate how diverse and inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystems are integral to realizing equitable economic and job growth.
• Accelerate the growth of regional economies that are focused on industries of the future.
• Foster cross-sector partnerships necessary to bring innovations from the lab to the market through commercialization assistance; and
• Address structural barriers that prevent access to equity capital.

https://www.eda.gov/funding/programs/build-to-scale

*Image courtesy of eda.gov