By Chris Heivly, Managing Director at Build The Fort and Startup Community EIR @ Techstars

Can you remember 2021? We were coming out of COVID and the federal government had developed an initiative called the Build Back Better Regional Challenge (BBBRC). The Economic Development Administration (EDA) awarded approximately $1 billion under the Build Back Better Regional Challenge. They received 529 applications for Phase 1 of this program. From these, 60 finalists were selected, and ultimately 21 regional coalitions received approximately $1 billion in grants. This initiative, created by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, aimed to make transformative investments to improve local economies.

Enough about the initiative - I want to talk about what I saw across multiple regions. Something remarkable happened — something I’ve never quite seen before.

Economic development organizations, accelerators, founders, influencers, universities, and chambers of commerce — groups that typically orbit each other but rarely move in tight formation — came together with a shared purpose. They coordinated. They aligned. They actually collaborated.

Why? Because the stakes were massive. The BBB grants offered the kind of transformational funding that could reshape regions for a generation. And with that kind of opportunity on the table, peer organizations who had once been competitors became allies. Silos crumbled. Turf lines blurred. A unified mission emerged.

It was beautiful. And it worked. But it was temporary, right?

But now that the grants have been awarded, I have one big question for all those leaders who pulled off the unthinkable:

Can you collaborate with the same enthusiasm when the opportunity isn’t backed by a billion-dollar check?

Can you bring that same energy to the table for less visible, less splashy, but still critical efforts?

The BBB grants showed us that we can coordinate across city and county lines. We can prioritize regional impact over institutional ego. We can put founders and job creation first instead of fighting over credit or headlines.

So what’s stopping us from applying that same muscle memory to the smaller, everyday opportunities that could still move the needle?

Can you co-host founder roundtables that aren’t branded by any one institution?

Can you keep showing up when the cameras are off and the press releases are done?

Can you design talent pipelines that span county lines, even if the ROI takes years to see?

Can you share resources even when there’s no formal MOU forcing your hand?

Can you sit in a room with your peers and come together to create an annual conference that attracts people from outside your region?

Can you elevate the region even if your organization doesn’t directly benefit?

These may not come with a nine-figure prize, but they matter. And more importantly — they build the trust and culture that set the stage for the next big thing.

So I’ll ask again, with all sincerity:

Can you be part of meaningful collaboration without the billion-dollar carrot?

Because if we can, we don’t have to wait for the next massive federal initiative to build a stronger, more connected innovation economy. We can start today.

Let’s not wait for the next billion-dollar carrot to prove that.

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