Startland News

More than a century of systemic land dispossession and discriminatory practices has left Black farmers with less than 0.6 percent of U.S. farmland — less than a third of the 16 million acres they operated in 1910, according to local urban farming advocates. They gathered Tuesday at Independence Boulevard Christian Church to confront this history and discuss solutions at the “KC Crisis of Black Food, Land & Survival Town Hall,” co-hosted by Black-owned Kansas City media outlets The KC Defender and The Kansas City Call.

Ryogoku Soccer Academy — with the help of local businesses like MADE MOBB, Café Ollama, and Café Cà Phê — is taking soccer from the pitch to the streets of Kansas City’s historic Northeast, Brad Leonard shared.

Former sports broadcaster and Pittsburgh native Frank Boal knows a thing or two about the pull of Kansas City, he shared. The longtime media personality moved here in 1981 for work and never left. Now, Boal and his wife, Sarah McEnerney-Boal, lead a podcast that explores exactly why influential and inspiring individuals choose to call the City of Fountains home.

KartWheel — launched in August 2024 — keeps a shopping cart’s wheel secure while a person is loading bags, bulky items, and kids into their car. ?“If this tool empowers another mom and helps her know that she has one less thing to worry about on her path, I will have done my job," said its inventor, Kristen Rock Chouinard.

The future of global software teams is built on cultural intelligence, said serial entrepreneur Matt Watson in his Product Driven Newsletter podcast with Oshri Cohen. That takes building trust — through a deliberate, thoughtful approach that goes beyond standard management practices.

A program designed to connect entrepreneurs with top-tier venture capitalists is now accepting Kansas City applicants. The 22 VC firms — including Iron Prairie Ventures and Redbud VC — confirmed for the May 14 Northwest Arkansas Council event represent more than $1.63 billion in assets under management.

Launching its latest innovation — BarGlance AI — in nightlife hotspots like Dallas, Las Vegas, Miami, and Kansas City is only part of the story for a South Carolina-based company that recently augmented its tech by integrating features from a Kansas City startup it acquired.

The team at VU Scholarships left it all on the stage Friday, walking away as champions in the Gamechangers & Champions bracket bash — a high-intensity pitch competition running parallel to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament in Wichita. NXTUS Kansas Department of Commerce

Kansas City’s DIY music scene has long been a hub for raw, creative talent — with eclectic frontman Kole Waters quickly becoming one of its standout names.

During a time of change and transition, a clear voice is more critical than ever, leaders of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation said Thursday, announcing Amy Unruh as the influential philanthropic organization’s new communications director.