I don’t know about you, but every time I go on social media, I see people vacationing in the Greek isles or somewhere on Bermuda, and while I’m stuck here in my lovely home office in my new hometown of Stanton, Virginia, I feel like summer as well.

So instead of a fully produced season that is a chapter in our playbook of ecosystem building, I am bringing you the Summer Skill Sessions.

I imagine you lying on a beach somewhere, kicking it with a cocktail or mocktail in hand, trying to keep cool and wondering how to become a better ecosystem building. Isn’t that what we all think about all the time?

The idea behind these Summer Skill Sessions is to bring you short snippets of episodes that introduce you to a very practical skill for ecosystem builders and walk you through some of the steps that you need to take to master that skill, and leave you with a lot of resources to dive a little bit deeper and become an expert on this skill.

In our first Summer Skills Session, we are going to talk about ecosystem mapping.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

• Four key reasons why we map ecosystems
• Why you need to engage collaborators as soon as possible
• How defining the ecosystem, target audience, scope, and the question you’re answering shape the map you’re making
• How making sure you collect qualitative data makes your map more than just a directory
• How your research question will guide your data analysis and the way you present your findings

Learn More About Anika Horn:

• Website: www.socialventurers.com
• Instagram: SocialVenturers
• Newsletter: Sign up for Impact Curator

Resources:

• Ecosystems for Change S01E01: What is Ecosystem Building?
• Ecosystems for Change S02E04: Servant Leadership, Co-writing New Narratives and Burnout in Ecosystem Building with Jeff Bennett
• Definition of an entrepreneurial ecosystem, Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation

DIY Resources

• E3 Scorecard, Forward Cities
• Guide for Mapping the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem, GIZ
• Building a community entrepreneurial ecosystem: A self-guided training for communities, Main Street America

Selected Service Providers

• Sourcelink Resource Navigator
• EcoMap
• Economic Impact Catalyst

Articles

• Chad Renando: Mapping Innovation Ecosystems
• Jeff Bennett: How to Get Started Mapping Your Entrepreneurial Ecosystem
• Jeff Bennett: The Benefits of Mapping Your Startup & Innovation Ecosystem
• Startup Junkies: Venture Ecosystem Building Canvas