Building Bridges Through Innovation & Inclusion

Two hundred and fifty years ago, America declared itself a nation built on the promise of opportunity. As the country marks that anniversary, I think it’s worth asking: whose opportunity? And more importantly, who gets to shape the things that come next? I'm from the South Side of Chicago, one of the most storied and misunderstood places in the country. Growing up here taught me something that a lot of individuals in policy rooms have yet to figure out: the Midwest isn’t just the middle of the country geographically. It’s the center of everything America could actually become. The Midwest will advance America’s global engagement in the next generation, and not through federal mandates, but through the entrepreneurial ecosystems and everyday people in places like Chicago who are quietly building the future right now. 

When people talk about America’s global standing, I would say that they usually mean military power or probably diplomatic relationships. But in a world driven by tech, capital, and innovation, global engagement seems to increasingly look like who’s building what and who those builders represent. The Midwest has a real shot at leading that conversation. It already hosts major research universities and a growing tech sector. But what it’s been missing is the full inclusion of the people who actually live there, particularly Black and brown communities that have been economically excluded for generations. 

That’s where private industry and nonprofit organizations come in. Chicago’s 1871 tech incubator is one real-world example of what this can look like. Founded in 2012, it has helped launch thousands of startups and has increasingly made diversity a priority. We can see this with their partnering with organizations like P33 Chicago which is a nonprofit coalition working to make the city a globally competitive tech hub (P33 Chicago, Chicago’s Tech Blueprint, 2021). When a black kid from Englewood or Woodlawn can walk into a space like that and find mentorship, funding, and a network that isn’t just local. That’s America changing what it exports to the world. Ideas, talent and companies born in communities that were once written off. 

State and local governments have a role to play too, but it’s a supporting role. Illinois has made commitments to expand broadband access and fund STEM education in the underserved communities, which would matter because global engagement in the next generation will indeed be digital first. If a young person in Harvey or Gary doesn't have internet access, they’re not just cut off from opportunity, but are cut off from the global conversation entirely. Local governments need to clear the runway, but the planes will be built by the people, companies, and organizations that are actually willing to invest in the communities that have been historically disinvested from. 

And I would say that individuals matter most of all. Not in a way that’s cliche, but because I’ve seen what it costs a family when economic systems don't work well for them. I was raised by a single mother on the south side who worked multiple jobs to keep us above water… just barely. Watching her navigate finances with almost no room for error, and sometimes not enough room at all, made me want to build something that could change those odds, not just for us, but for people in similar situations everywhere. The problem I grew up around isn't just unique to Chicago. They show up in Detroit, St. Louis, Milwaukee. And they’re all connected to the same global systems of capital, tech, and exclusion that the rest of the world is grappling with too. 

The Midwest advancing America’s global engagement doesn’t look like sending some diplomats abroad. It looks like a generation of entrepreneurs from places like the South Side building companies that could compete globally, create jobs locally, and prove that diversity isn’t a liability. It looks like nonprofits are closing the digital divide. It looks like city governments are making it easier for small businesses owned by black and brown founders to access capital. It looks like every kid who was told that success wasn’t meant for people from where they’re from is proving that assumption wrong. 

America’s 250th year is a moment to reckon with what this country has and has yet to deliver. The Midwest, often overlooked but always resilient, is positioned to be the place where that reckoning turns into something that is real. But that’s only if WE invest in the people who’ve been doing the work all along.