(From Tucson Foodie)  University of Arizona FORGE (Finding Opportunities and Resources to Grow Entrepreneurs) recently announced the new Tucson City of Gastronomy (TCoG) speaker series, “The Business of Heritage Foods.” They’ll take place every second Thursday from 9 – 10 a.m. at FORGE at Roy Place, 44 N. Stone Ave.

The monthly series, which is part of the “Thursdays at FORGE” event series, is free to attend and provides resources on building and sustaining food-based businesses in Southern Arizona.

FORGE welcomes House Trevethan to this year’s FORGE Ahead accelerator program. House Trevethan aims to fill a gap in the market by addressing the need for small businesses to receive the same service and tools as Enterprise level organizations.  “Technology projects can be overwhelming,” said Heidi Trevethan.  “Having a proper, vetted tech roadmap in place before building any project is the key to success.  Proper documentation and processes along with kindness goes a long way!” 

STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Art Mathematics) FORGE is our newest location on the University of Arizona campus. STEAM FORGE is a place for students to explore ideas, develop entrepreneurial skills, and learn about venture creation. 

As part of our Thursday series, FORGE at Roy Place hosts presentations from 9am - 10am, community co-working from 10am - 4pm, and on-site mentoring from 10am - 12pm.  In addition to FORGE programming, the building also houses important community partners including Startup Tucson, BlueStone Venture Partners, and the Tucson City of Gastronomy.  On Thursdays, you'll find drop-in mentoring available from our dedicated FORGE Mentor in Residence John Achoukian, and mentoring for food-based ventures from onsite Tucson City of Gastronomy mentors.  Be sure to check out our calendar of Thursday events and reserve your spot!

Our Resilience FORGE location is located on the Tucson Campus in ENR2 Room S120A. Resilience FORGE is a partnership between FORGE and the Arizona Institute for Resilient Environments and Societies.  At Resilience FORGE we work with students, faculty, staff, and community members to explore ideas to bring solutions to environmental and sustainability-related problems.  Through connecting with like-minded others and accessing resources, tools, mentors, and opportunities individuals can chart their path to tackling these big challenges.  Our student leaders, staff, and mentors are available during designated hours or by appointment to do individual or group consultations. Walk-ins always welcome!

Located at the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix campus, FORGE at PBC hosts two mentors, Flora Tromelin and Ben Maurey. Ben Maurey is a strategy consultant in biotechnology with a strong focus on developing and commercializing cancer therapeutics and is one of the Mentors in Residence helping with the selection process for our Biomedical Entrepreneur Startup Scholarship and Residency.  Flora Tromelin is the founder and CEO of FCT Strategies, an LLC located in Phoenix, Arizona. and an expert in public affairs and communication.

The University of Arizona Yuma is a regional location that partners with Arizona Western College, Imperial Valley College in California and other Arizona community colleges. FORGE offers entrepreneur mentorship and support at the Yuma Academic Center.  Our dedicated Mentor in Residence in Yuma, is Randy Nelson.  Randy worked as the Director of a Small Business Development Center covering Yuma and LaPaz Counties assisting the startup business community, growing existing businesses, and selling or closing businesses. Randy has been working directly with entrepreneurs for over 20 years in Yuma and LaPaz Counties.

Our last newsletter of the year contains ideas for the perfect Christmas present in the form of an Entrepreneurial Mindset Assessment, The Venturing 101 Course, and the FORGE Fireside Playlist. It also has updates on our upcoming events and job openings. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

This week's newsletter celebrates our Biomedical Entrepreneur Startup Scholarship winners and our new resident team Jackson Medical Solutions. It also highlights the upcoming FORGE FIRESIDE with Santa and our events coordinator, Holly!

Sydney Arriaga, Abhiman Gupta and Isaac Kailat announced as winners of the FORGE Biomedical Entrepreneur Startup Scholarship and Residency opportunity for Summer 2023. All three Biomedical Entrepreneur Startup Scholarship and Residency opportunity for Summer 2023. All three students submitted outstanding proposals for startup concepts to improve patient health outcomes..