The Top Secret Drone Company Hiding In Plain Sight | Justin Call, Modovolo

The Top Secret Drone Company Hiding In Plain Sight | Justin Call, Modovolo

What if one of the most interesting startups in New York is being built quietly in a barn in Vernon? In this episode of Rust Belt Startup, I sit down with Justin Call, founder and CEO of Modovolo [https://modovolo.com], a company designing a new kind of drone — and doing it far from the typical startup scene. Instead of chasing hype or venture capital headlines, Justin and his team have been focused on something much harder: patiently building a real company, solving real problems, and learning what it takes to bring a complex idea to life. In our conversation, Justin shares the story behind Modovolo — how the company got started, why they chose a very different approach to designing drones, and what it’s like to build a startup in a small community in Upstate New York. We also talk about some of the lessons entrepreneurs can take from his journey, including: • Why staying focused matters more than trying to grow too fast • What it’s really like to build a product that has to work in the real world • The importance of patience when you’re building something new • Why great companies can be built outside Silicon Valley • And how small teams can quietly do big things This episode is a behind-the-scenes look at how startups actually get built — not just the highlight reel. If you’re interested in entrepreneurship, building things from scratch, or the future of innovation in places like Upstate New York, this conversation is for you. Rust Belt Startup [https://soundcloud.com/user-649200611] · The Top Secret Drone Company Hiding In Plain Sight | Justin Call, Modovolo [https://soundcloud.com/user-649200611/the-top-secret-drone-company]

The Abolitionist Movement as an Early American Startup | Max Smith

I can say, without exaggeration, this is one of the most extraordinary stories that I’ve ever heard. and maybe one of the most important, so my guest today is Max Smith. He’s a historian, a storyteller, and a lifelong steward of the history of Peterborough New York. So this is a tiny village in Madison County that most people have never heard of, but that quietly shaped the course of American history. So what you’re about to hear. Is the story of how the abolitionist movement functioned in many ways, like an early startup, so a small group of people that had an idea that was considered radical, dangerous, and disruptive, and the epicenters of that abolitionist movement. it wasn’t Boston or Washington. it was right here in upstate New York. The story starts with the drunken mob shutting down an abolitionist meeting in Utica and how that meeting was reborn the next day in Peterborough. And hundreds of people walked miles overnight to continue that work, and those choices sent ripples across the country that still shape our politics today. Now Max walks us through the life of Gerrit Smith, whom I’m sure you’ve probably never heard of. I’ve never heard of him, but he was one of the wealthiest men in America in the 18 hundreds. And after this event, he started giving away his fortune to fund abolition, women’s suffrage and civil rights. He was hosting Frederick Douglas, Harriet Tubman, John Brown, and formerly enslaved people at his own dinner table, and his mansion in Peterborough became one of the stops on the Underground Railroad. This is also a deeply personal story for Max. It’s one that connects his own family lineage directly to the Underground Railroad, the Civil War, and the long arc of freedom in this country. So if you care about how change actually happens and how movements are built, how courage, community, and conviction scale over time. This is a conversation you are not going to forget. It’s not a startup story in the way we usually tell them, but it might be one of the most powerful ones we’ve ever shared. Learn more about The National Abolition Hall of Fame and Museum [https://www.nationalabolitionhalloffameandmuseum.org/] and the Abolition Walk  [https://www.abolitionroad.org/]   Rust Belt Startup [https://soundcloud.com/user-649200611] · The Abolitionist Movement as an Early American Startup | Max Smith [https://soundcloud.com/user-649200611/the-abolitionist-movement-as]

What Upstate New York Can Learn from Upstate Sweden | Zack Schuman

In this episode, I’m joined by Zack Schuman, a public affairs scholar at Hamilton College, to explore what he learned after spending a full year living and researching in Sweden with his family. Zack’s research focuses on how communities actually work — especially in rural and peripheral regions — and how entrepreneurship, institutions, and culture shape economic life outside major metro areas. While in Sweden, he studied how small regions support lifestyle businesses and social enterprises, how immigration reshapes local economies, and why quality of life often takes precedence over high-growth startup culture. This conversation dives into: * Why Sweden isn’t built around “unicorn” startups — and why that matters * How social safety nets change the way people think about risk and entrepreneurship * The role of universities as anchor institutions in small and rural regions • Immigration, diversity, and the creativity required to deliver social services * The difference between being welcomed and truly belonging * What it means to leave community work — and return with new perspective This isn’t a conversation about copying Sweden’s model wholesale. It’s about asking better questions: What makes a place work? Who gets to participate? And how do small businesses, institutions, and people quietly build culture over time? If you care about community development, entrepreneurship outside big cities, higher education, or the future of places like Upstate New York, this episode will give you a lot to think about. Rust Belt Startup [https://soundcloud.com/user-649200611] · Zack Shuman [https://soundcloud.com/user-649200611/zack-shuman]

What Transportation Really Says About a Community | Matt VanSlyke

In this episode, I sit down with Matt Van Slyke, founder of Utica Bike Rescue [https://uticabikerescue.org], to talk about bikes, mobility, walkable cities, and why transportation is really about participation and freedom. Utica Bike Rescue has redistributed thousands of bikes over the past decade — helping people get to work, school, and medical appointments — but Matt’s work goes far beyond bike repair. As a transportation planner, he helps us understand how infrastructure shapes daily life, community connection, and opportunity. In this conversation, we explore: 🚲 What Utica Bike Rescue actually does — and how the model works 🏙️ Why walkable and bikeable communities create stronger civic life 🚗 The surprising reality of car access in mid-size cities like Utica 🧠 Why mobility = freedom, especially for people without reliable transportation 🔌 Utica Bike Rescue’s new electric mobile bike repair van and what it unlocks 👥 How everyday people can support better transportation and community design This episode isn’t just about bikes — it’s about how we design places that invite people to participate, connect, and belong. Learn more or get involved: https://uticabikerescue.org [https://uticabikerescue.org] If you enjoyed this conversation, like, subscribe, and share it with someone who cares about community, cities, or local impact.   Additional Links: Ryan Interviewed on the Love Living Local Podcast > [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/love-living-local-315/id1705644767?i=1000743363357] The Hospitalitarian Podcast > [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hospitalitarian-podcast/id1855960202] Rust Belt Startup [https://soundcloud.com/user-649200611] · What Transportation Really Says About a Community | Matt VanSlyke [https://soundcloud.com/user-649200611/what-transportation-really-says-about-a-community-matt-vanslyke]

Good Bread, Good Data, Better Lending: Reimagining Access to Capital

In this episode, I sit down with Noa Simons, founder and CEO of Good Bread, [https://goodbread.net/] a new kind of small business lender working to reinvent how entrepreneurs access capital. If you’ve ever tried to raise money—through banks, credit unions, investors, or anywhere in between—you know it’s never one-size-fits-all. Even in communities with great lending institutions, many founders still fall through the cracks. Noa’s on a mission to fix that. Good Bread is a startup blending technology, psychology, and trust to create a more human, accessible path to capital. One of the most fascinating pieces of their approach is the Boss Index—a behavioral data tool her team uses to understand creditworthiness far beyond a traditional credit score. In this conversation, Noa and I dig into:   * * Why access to capital is so difficult for so many entrepreneurs * How her co-founder relationships were built and how she’s raising her own investment dollars * How behavioral data can create more equitable lending * What a “human-centered” underwriting model actually looks like * The role trust plays in entrepreneurship and local economies * Why overlooked regions (like ours) are full of untapped possibility   If you’re interested in startups, money, trust, or building meaningful businesses in emerging regions, this episode is for you.   Rust Belt Startup [https://soundcloud.com/user-649200611] · Good Bread, Good Data, Better Lending: Reimagining Access to Capital [https://soundcloud.com/user-649200611/good-bread-good-data-better-lending-reimagining-access-to-capital] PODCAST HIGHLIGHTS