Powered by Local First Arizona and hosted by the University of Arizona at FORGE at Roy Place, The Hustle Hour features a rotating panel of Tucson-based business owners, community leaders and activists―with the goal of providing access to underrepresented perspectives and approaches in local business.

For March 2024, the panel theme is Technology for Good―with a focus on the emerging role of artificial intelligence (AI)

Experts from the Tucson City of Gastronomy present resources and information to grow local food businesses in Southern Arizona.

Sponsored by the University of Arizona FORGE, the Tucson City of Gastronomy (TCoG) presents this series once a month on the business of heritage foods. Writers, journalists, and creators will be sharing tips and best practices on getting your food story told by the media. We will be joined by Felipe Garcia, President and CEO of Visit Tucson, Shane Reiser, Head Foodie at Tucson Foodie and Cathalena Burch, Senior Reporter at Arizona Daily Star. Panelists will share what makes a great food story, why media are interested in your story and how the media can help amplify you and your business.

This fourth Thursday, we invite you to meet current and graduating startup companies in the FORGE Venture Advisors Residency accelerator program. FORGE Venture Advisors accelerates startup growth and profitability. Residents in this competitive accelerator work on custom development plans with experienced entrepreneurs and investors and meet regularly with peers and a team of expert mentors. Many graduates go on to national caliber accelerators, significant venture capital raises, or acquisitions.

Hear mini pitches from some of the newest resident startups coming on board in 2024, learn where graduating companies are headed next, meet founders and network with ecosystem partners. Attendees will have the opportunity to tour FORGE to see the services and spaces provided to businesses in the accelerator, as well as learn more about our community co-working programs for individuals.

Wine educator, Arielle De Soucey will be moderating a panel with three local entrepreneurs with different experiences in Arizona's wine industry. The panel will include Sarah Fox, Head of Operations for Sand-Reckoner Winery, Sally Kane owner of The Coronet Restaurant, Coronet Cafe and Nightjar and Jeanne Snell owner of Arizona Wine Collective. The panel will discuss the rewards and the challenges of making, serving and selling Arizona wines. Arielle DeSoucey is the Wine Director for Tap & Bottle, Tap & Bottle North, and Westbound. Over the past fifteen years, Arielle has been awarded multiple wine certifications, including the WSET Level Three, and she is a CSW - Certified Specialist of Wine with the Society of Wine Educators. As a wine buyer, educator, consultant, and passionate wine enthusiast, Arielle hosts public and private wine education programs, tastings, and events, with a mission to engage and educate the Arizona wine community.

On this edition, Brian chats with Marcia Dawood. A TEDx speaker and the host of The Angel Next Door Podcast, Marcia walks the talk and holds investments in over 50 early-stage companies and funds. She is committed to expanding support for diverse companies that overcome the world’s biggest problems and accelerate positive change.

Gloria and Huémac created fresh salsas and other products with flavorful Chiltepín peppers. First domesticated in central Mexico 6,000 to 7,000 years ago, the name Chiltepín comes from the Nahuatl words Chili and Tepin, translating to “small pepper.”  Chiltepín thrives in southern Arizona and northwestern Mexico but is not well known outside this region. 

Local First Arizona, in collaboration with the University of Arizona FORGE, is debuting a brand-new series of events on the third Thursday of each month: The Hustle Hour. Join us for a building tour, networking, and―at the center of the evening―a rotating panel of speakers featuring Local First members. Each panel will feature insights and expertise around a particular topic, drawing on panelists' own experiences as entrepreneurs and community members here in Tucson. For October 2023, our panel topic will be Black business ownership in Tucson moderated courtesy of Tucson Urban League Young Professionals (TULYP) by Trehon Cockrell-Coleman (Advocate, Leader, Public Speaker).

Join FORGE Founding Executive Director Brian Ellerman every first Thursday for a lively conversation about people, programs, and ideas that advance our entrepreneurial ecosystem.

On this edition, Brian chats with John Dearie, the founder and President of the Center for American Entrepreneurship (CAE.)

Hear the story of how Yadi Wang and Oatman Farms are making a difference for people, products and planet and get to taste Oatman Farms products!
Oatman Farms™ is a fearless food company with a mission to revitalize and sustain family farms in hot and dry desert environments, including our own Oatman Flats Ranch, the Arizona farm that has been family owned for four generations. To preserve and steward the land, the owners of Oatman Flats Ranch are committed to using regenerative, organic farming practices, growing heritage crops adapted to our soil and climate, and working with chefs and bakers to craft delicious products. Eat Fearlessly™! Inspired by the farming lifestyle of his extended family, Yadi Wang was determined to become a farmer after receiving his doctoral degree in environmental science and years as a chemical and process engineer. As a first-generation farmer, he is one of the pioneers on developing large scale weed mitigation and integrated pest management methodologies using multi-species cover crops, chemical (pesticide, herbicide, fungicide, etc.) free and intensive managed sheep rotational grazing to steward the land at Oatman Flats Ranch, in the hottest and driest environment in the US Southwest.