Hillsborough County has awarded $230,000 in funding to 31 local applicants through its flagship tech-centric program, the Economic Development Innovation Initiative (EDI2).
The
EDI2 program is the first of its kind of Florida. Established in June 2013, the program aims to bring innovation, job creation, technology and new business to the Tampa Bay region. In an effort to lead this movement, the Hillsborough County Economic Development department set aside $2 million in funding to award to events and programs that are centered around technology and innovation. Led by County Commissioner Mark Sharpe, EDI2 awarded $307,000 to applicants in the
first round of funding in fall 2013.
Some of the latest round of funding will go toward programs and events already well-established within the Tampa Bay community, such as
Startup Weekend Tampa Bay 2014 in March, monthly
StartupGrind events, and the Moffitt Cancer Center's
Business of BioTech 2014.
The bulk of the funding was awarded to one-off conferences like Gulf Bay Consulting's Social Media Engagement event in September 2014, which received $12,375. Girls in Tech Tampa Bay, meanwhile, was awarded $12,500 for outreach and an event in December 2014, and TiE Tampa Bay's TiE Breaker III 2014, which took place in January, received $19,000. The University of Tampa's Entrepreneurs Student Organization was awarded $14,500 for its Southeast Entrepreneurial Conference in February 2014.
Other funded programs include the Computer Mentors Group, Inc., which was awarded $25,000 for the 2014 STEM Education Showcase Tampa, and Nuturism Media Group, Inc., awarded $25,000 for Running Lean Bootcamp. Both are in May 2014.
To view a
full listing of funded projects and applications, visit the Hillsborough County website.
Events and programs must meet several stages of criteria before they are awarded funding, including the ability to measure event metrics and a way to clearly identify the economic development impact of each project.
EDI2 is "focused on building a vibrant and sustainable startup community and is centered on the use of technology and innovation,'' according to a news release from Hillsborough County.
Hillsborough County is currently accepting applications for its third cycle of EDI2 funding. Applications and additional information can be found at the
EDI2 website. The deadline to apply for the third round of EDI2 funding is April 1, 2013.
Writer:
Justine Benstead
Source: Annette Spina, Hillsborough County
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