When Rochelle Silveira moved from Brazil to the United States, she often heard the same piece of advice: “Right company, wrong place.” Innovation, people told her, belonged to the coasts. But after years of working with founders and mentoring startups across the country, she began to see a different truth.

“There’s incredible innovation happening here,” Silveira said. “People just don’t see it yet. Everyone always asks, ‘Who’s building in Alabama? Who’s funding Alabama?’ And I realized we don’t have a clear picture of our own ecosystem.”

That realization inspired her newest personal project, the Innovation Ecosystem Map, a community-driven effort to connect the dots and build a framework for visibility and connectivity, starting in Alabama.

“The vision is to create a living directory and map that highlights startups, investors, enablers, service providers, and community builders,” she explained. “It’s updated monthly on the 25th and open to everyone.”

Since its soft launch, the project has already cataloged more than 300 companies and organizations from across the state. Each entry contributes to what Silveira calls a “living map,” one that grows and evolves as more contributors add to it. The goal, she says, is not just to list names, but to reveal the networks that already exist in Alabama and help new ones form.

“It started as something I wanted to do for the community,” Silveira said. “Right now, our resources are siloed. Universities have their networks, chambers have theirs, investors have theirs. My goal is to build a shared map that can grow with the ecosystem.”

Silveira currently serves as the Managing Director of gBETA Huntsville, part of the nationally ranked accelerator gener8tor. Her work gives her a close-up view of the energy and challenges in North Alabama’s startup landscape. But she is careful to clarify that the Innovation Ecosystem Map is an independent personal project, separate from her professional role.

“This isn’t a gBETA or gener8tor initiative,” she said. “It’s something I’m doing on my own time because I believe in this community and the potential here.”

The first version of the map is available as a downloadable PDF, but Silveira is already working toward a more dynamic, interactive version. The online platform would allow users to filter by industry, location, or type of support, making it easier for startups to connect with local investors, advisors, and service providers.

“If you’re a founder looking for a local accountant or patent attorney, you shouldn’t have to look out of state,” she said. “We have those people here. We just need a way to see each other.”

When she shared the project publicly on LinkedIn, she expected a few local reactions. Instead, the post quickly spread, drawing attention from founders, investors, and community leaders well beyond Alabama. “People from other states started reaching out, asking how they could build something similar,” she said.

That kind of response, she believes, shows the power of connection. “Once people can see who’s out there, collaboration happens naturally,” Silveira said. “That’s what makes ecosystems grow.”

The Innovation Ecosystem Map is updated monthly and open to everyone. Whether you are a startup, funder, service provider, or community organizer, the project is designed to help Alabama’s innovation network thrive, one connection at a time.

For more information or to submit your organization to the map, visit https://www.rochellesilveira.com.br/ecosystemmap.