Hello all, it’s Ben again.

I knew a lot of Bens while growing up in Omaha. There were actually so many of us at my high school that we formed the League of Bens, where we often exchanged stories about getting mixed up by classmates or peers giving us the obligatory “Big Ben” nickname.

It seems like the Nebraska startup scene is also a place for Ben-kind. Invest Nebraska, the statewide nonprofit venture development organization, touts three Bens on its team page. Ben Williamson, an external partner listed by Invest Nebraska and the co-founder of Grit Road Partners, recently spoke at the “AgTech and Beyond” event put on by the Nebraska Chamber Foundation.

The event brought business, industry and education leaders together to discuss how Nebraska can stay economically competitive with new technologies, workforce development and necessary infrastructure. And our own Lev Gringauz was there in Fremont, capturing what speakers discussed.

In the case of Williamson, he spoke on his belief that the development of Nebraska’s agtech ecosystem is a model for how to advance further innovations in the state.

“Another program, another fund, another building, another conference, another committee,” Williamson said. “These things can be valuable, but … the more important questions are, ‘Are we building trust? Are we connecting people that would not otherwise meet? Are we helping entrepreneurs get access to research, customers, talent and capital?’”

Read more about what Williamson said in the story on SPN, which we plan to be a part of a series of pieces by Lev discussing takeaways from the event.

It’s perfect for those who wanted to be there but couldn’t. This Ben would’ve liked to attend to pen for SPN, but I was busy back then.