How America’s Competitive Edge Can Be Rebuilt Through Inclusive Capital

At the Fast Company Impact Council Annual Meeting, leaders debated how to rebuild America’s competitive edge by expanding inclusive, profitable ecosystems.

America’s Competitive Edge: A Data‑Driven Blueprint

Joe Scantlebury, president of Living Cities, shared a three‑tier capital framework—knowledge, social, and financial—that he argues is essential for a resilient economy. Knowledge capital provides the analytical foundation; without it, financial outlays become inefficient. Social capital links entrepreneurs to networks that lower transaction costs. Financial capital must be redirected toward underserved innovators, he said.

“Limiting who can build and own companies erodes national competitiveness,” Scantlebury warned.

Data from Reuters shows US federal debt now ↑ $31 trillion, while productivity growth has slipped ↓ 0.5% over the past year. The same report links the slowdown to a narrow investment pool that excludes mid‑size cities.

Living Cities has piloted this model in Atlanta, Nashville, Miami, Charlotte and Memphis, aligning public, private and civic actors to channel pandemic-era recovery funds into local innovators. The result, according to internal metrics, is a 12% rise in new business registrations and a 9% increase in minority‑owned start‑ups.

Experts at the council cautioned against binary policy choices. Jean‑Claude Brizard warned that blanket bans on classroom technology ignore teachers’ capacity to adapt tools for learning outcomes. Deirdre White highlighted the financial upside of urban mining—recovering rare‑earth metals from discarded electronics—projecting a potential $4 billion annual revenue stream.

For investors, the message is clear: broaden the definition of “viable market” to include historically excluded regions. By doing so, capital not only spreads risk but also taps into untapped demand, delivering higher returns.

Correction: An earlier dispatch misstated the debt figure as $30 trillion; the correct amount is $31 trillion.