A version of this post was originally published on The New Tropic website.We are thrilled that The New Tropic is launching the next version of Startup.miami today, an effort supported by Knight Foundation that began in 2015 to help better connect South Florida’s burgeoning community of innovators and entrepreneurs. With this next take on Startup.miami, the goals remain the same. The aim is for this to be a place that helps you navigate Miami’s growing startup community, learn more about cool things that others are doing and share what you are doing with the broader community.

Photo copyright © Sam Goldberg used with permission. Around the world the cost to start new ventures is dropping dramatically, democratizing the ability to build out ideas. In 2000 it cost $5 million to launch a tech startup; now it costs $5,000, according to CB Insights. The Internet and mobile technology allow ideas to scale at warp speed. Consider it took Airbnb just four years to match the number of rooms that Hilton needed 93 years to assemble. This presents a unique opportunity for cities – and, in particular, Miami. Never before have so many people had the ability to drive outsized change with so little.    Amid this ongoing shift, we’ve asked a question here in Knight Foundation’s Miami Community program: Can these trends that are transforming our economy be leveraged to positively reshape our cities and communities at a scale and speed unlike we’ve seen before? These questions have guided our work in South Florida. Over the past three and a half years, we’ve helped build an ecosystem supporting and propelling the city’s emerging entrepreneurs. This includes everything from co-working spaces and mentor networks to better access to investors, events and learning opportunities.

Photo above: Black Tech Week Miami 2015, via blacktechweek.org. As we start the year there are some great Miami startup and Knight Foundation events in January and February. Black Tech Week runs from Feb. 14-20, the Miami Mini Maker Faire takes over the National YoungArts Campus Feb. 20-21, and our Meet KF Miami Breakfast series returns Jan. 26. Also, be sure to take a look at startup.miami, a new guide to navigating Miami's growing startup community, which was published in December in partnership with The New Tropic. We welcome all feedback as we seek to make the guide a great resource for you and those interested in our startup scene. Check out these upcoming events: • Jan. 20: Citi presents Women in Tech featuring talks by Mary Biggins, co-founder of ClassPass and Brodi Jackson, co-founder and managing principal of Caerus Ventures. • Jan. 22: Join me for a Beacon Council Breakfast panel discussion on new ways to nurture talent to fuel Miami's innovation ecosystem. • Jan. 22-24: The LAB Miami hosts the second Annual Miami Bitcoin Hackathon.

Miami skyline photo by Matthew Paulson on Flickr. Three years ago at Knight Foundation we made a new bet on Miami. We launched an effort focused on supporting and propelling Miami’s emerging community of entrepreneurs. The aim is to help create an entrepreneurial ecosystem with the resources that best enable entrepreneurs to pursue the ideas of their choosing. We’ve made more than 160 investments to build this network. Examples range from conferences such as Sime MIA, which is underway today, to The Idea Center at Miami Dade College, Endeavor Miami and, most recently, Startupbootcamp Miami. Miami now consistently ranks as one of the nation’s most active startup communities.  But, as this network has grown, we’ve consistently heard people ask for a guide to help them navigate this rapidly expanding ecosystem of resources that range from co-working spaces and weekly events, to angel investor groups and platforms to find talented workers. So, in partnership with The New Tropic, today we’re launching startup.miami, an online guide aimed at helping to better understand the resources available to entrepreneurs, investors, the solely curious—everyone—in Miami’s startup community. The guide is set up to help you find the answer to a specific question. For instance, where can you find funding and mentorship? Or, how can you connect with the startup community? Or, where can you find co-working and office space? Where can you find training and new skills? In each case, startup.miami provides a list of potential solutions.

We have a terrific lineup of events set for this month in Miami that are supported by Knight Foundation. They include: • July 6, 13, 20, 27: Code for MIA hosts its weekly Civic Hack Night. • July 6, 13, 20, 27: Hacks/Hackers hosts OpenHack Miami at The LAB Miami. • July 8: Digital Grass presents an interactive conversation, The Big Business of Civic Innovation with special guests: Carla Mays, Dr. Pandwe Gibson, Armando Ibarra and me at The Lab Miami. • July 8, 15, 22, 29: Live Ninja holds #WaffleWednesday, its weekly tech and creatives morning meetup in Wynwood. • July 9: Join The Idea Center at Miami Dade College for student-led venture presentations at the CREATE Accelerator Showcase.

We have a terrific lineup of events set for this month in Miami that are supported by Knight Foundation. They include: •       May 13, 20, 27: Live Ninja holds #WaffleWednesday, its weekly tech and creatives morning meetup in Wynwood.  •       May 13: Accelerated Growth Partners hosts the fourth installment of their Angel Education Series, taught by Jaret Davis of Greenberg Traurig and Jason Stark of Private Advising Group. •       May 13: A talk by Michael Nygard on Simulation Testing will be held at The LAB Miami. •       May 14: TheAsian Pacific American Bar Association of South Florida presents: Legal Symposium for Startup Companies at The LAB Miami.

Flagler Street in downtown Miami. Credit: Robertson Adams. March brings another terrific lineup of events supported by Knight Foundation, including the inaugural PreMoney Miami (use promo code "KNIGHT"), the return of Startup City: Miami (use promo code "Knight79") and MIA Music Summit.  I want to especially highlight the Singularity Global Impact Challenge Miami information session on Wednesday, March 18. The contest invites entrepreneurs to submit ideas that address the challenge of sea level rise in South Florida. The information session will include a talk by Salim Ismail, Singularity founding executive director. Here’s a look at what lies ahead: 

Photo of downtown Miami by Flickr user Xynn Tii. Several new Knight-supported events have landed on the February calendar, so we’re sending an update. Whether you’re connecting with Latin American and U.S. media innovators at Media Party Miami  or hacking for civic change at Code Across 2015, there are plenty of opportunities to learn and get involved in the community. Feb. 13-14: Media Party Miami presents two days of panels and speakers and media innovation and hands-on learning with leaders in U.S. and Latin American media. Feb. 13: The Idea Center presents Pioneers @ MDC with education entrepreneur John Katzman.    Feb. 18: Jose Estabil, Director of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, MIT Skoltech Intiative, gives a talk "Innovation Happens Everywhere” at The Idea Center.