On June 2013, the Latin American Development Bank (CAF) published the report named Entrepreneurship in Latin America, from subsistence to productive transformation. The study offers data about the link between economic growth, innovation and entrepreneurship. It argues that productivity, within an economy, is fostered by better management practices, technological progress, and the creation of new products, solutions and services, which add value and are accessible to national and foreign markets.According to the report, "this process of innovation and creation is guided by entrepreneurs capable to foresee new needs and how to satisfy these needs with new technologies and services, as well as they can coordinate the use of resources and personnel in the organizations". When these entrepreneurs create projects that grow in scale and add value, there is a positive impact to the community and the country, as long as they become sources of employment and social progress.The report points out that "in the region, 17% of the adult population is involved in some kind of enterprise, which is among the highest rates of entrepreneurial activity in the world". However, most of these enterprises emerge as a "way of subsistence, due to the lack of employment opportunities, rather than as a source of innovation and creation of value". The study includes a set of recommendations in terms of practices and strategies aimed to contribute to the generation of ecosystems that would encourage and support a rather innovative entrepreneurial activity. Moreover, the report describes a set of characteristics common to successful entrepreneurs and the contexts where they manage to develop.Who and where are theyFrom Schumpeter to the modern concepts of the Lean Startup, a lot has been said about the nature and backgrounds of successful entrepreneurs. The report argues that "success in business is achieved by autonomous individuals with the capacity to show a creative and innovative thinking, able to thrive under risk and uncertainty and with managerial qualities". Due to the sudden technological, economical and social changes which are the trademark of our times, tolerance to risk becomes crucial.Professor Paris L'Etraz from the Spanish IE Business School draws his definition along those lines. He explains that an entrepreneur is a "person that sees opportunity where others see ambiguity, fear and insecurity". Some authors point to another trait that pops up as reaction to the context. It is the willingness to overcome the resistance toward change that appears in the people around the entrepreneur. Adaptation and flexibility are also important.Fernando Moncayo, Ecuadorian entrepreneur also professor in the IDE Business School and cofounder of Asiam Business Group, stresses the difference between creative capacity and innovative entrepreneurship. "Some people think of themselves as entrepreneurs because they can come up with an idea. That's mistaken. Ideas are widespread. But the process of development of a company consists in turning that idea into a reality, an organization that will need a manager who can make it work and be profitable".Nevertheless, the task of developing a quality startup depends not only on the individual leader. The context plays a significant role. The book Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel's economic miracle, argues that several factors have converged in Israel to foster the activity of entrepreneurship and innovation, from geography to public policies and history. Meanwhile, the city of Barcelona in Spain has become a hotspot for international entrepreneurs due to several reasons, such as "the arrival of people with entrepreneurial skills and experience on the one hand, and the economic crisis that reduce employment and forces locals to be inventive on thehand, which has changed the way the community regards entrepreneurs that fail, now there is much more tolerance", director of Foundation Entrepreneurship School Oscar Sanchez says.Rex Northern, executive director of Cleantech Open, American startup accelerator, points to the context where the entrepreneur operates. In order to develop a project, "the first attribute is tolerance to failure. The context must be designed to allow the individual to take risks. But then there should be mechanisms to de-risk an operation. This means availability of services and methodologies such as law firms, accountants, consultants, human resources, intellectual property solutions, coaches and mentors, so to be able to start a company from the scratch, while limiting the cash outflow".Adriana Garcia Grasso, head of the Center for the Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CICE) of the EAFIT University in Colombia, refers to other entities that support entrepreneurs, "in Colombia, entrepreneurial initiatives are encouraged and supported by institutions such as incubators, development centers, risk capital agents, that offer services and solutions considering the nature, goal and stage of the project".Taking into account the limitations of the Latin American context, Moncayo emphasizes the cultural factor. He criticizes the Latin understanding of failure, which "tends to punish it rather than consider it as an opportunity to learn and show resilience. Within this context, the Latin entrepreneur prefers to stay on the comfort zone instead of risking too much". The professor noticed that "the country that will change first this cultural matrix will lead in productivity and progress. This implies offering support to the entrepreneurs that has gone through a failure".Routes to start upBusiness schools, incubators and accelerators are well acknowledged sources of support for entrepreneurs, each one with a set of pros and cons.As for the business schools, the classic argument draws on the notion that an entrepreneurial attitude can't be taught. In addition, there is the criticism to the increasing cost of college and graduate education. The argument against incubators refers that these institutions do not go beyond the basics of providing office space and other facilities to start up a business, whereas the person leading the project needs further guidance in terms of management, legal issues, marketing and sales. Some authors point out that "those effective incubators are the ones willing to facilitate advisement with the negotiations of deals, the relation with clients, and the management of the firm".On the other side, some schools are known by offering to entrepreneur alumni a more concrete support which goes beyond teaching them about management skills and business plans. Schools that are established as entrepreneurship hotspots are those associated with accelerators, incubators and that help to build a network where the entrepreneur finds access to risk capital, and other fellow entrepreneurs with similar interests and the necessary skills and know how that contributes and fosters innovation.As well, Garcia Grasso gives great relevance to the possibility of having access to a solid global network, "the MBA contributes essentially to that aspect, it provides access to key people from different organizations, sectors and business environments".Duke University's Fuqua School of Business stands out for its effort in supporting students' entrepreneurial initiatives. Jon Fjeld is the director at the Fuqua's Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. He describes the goal of the center as focusing mostly on technological projects, although "we are not restrictive and are willing to consider other ideas concerning healthcare, energy or agriculture, as long as we find an innovative element, something new in the proposal".Fjeld points to a recent program implemented at the center, the Startup Matchmaker. "We have seen how connections and relationships are the most limiting aspect for students and young people in general. So we try to provide access to a network that includes university students, but also outside talent. If you have an idea, you can find the right team to support your project. Besides, we also help students to find internships at startups, so they can learn firsthand about the process of founding and developing a company.IE Business School is also active fostering entrepreneurship. According to professor L'Etraz, the school shows a strong focus on social projects, humanities and community efforts.When it comes to create and support entrepreneurial ecosystems, Moncayo refers to some institutions with educational purpose but are not essentially academia. These are the Start-up Schools. Outside Latin America, the idea can be traced back to the USA with the Draper University and Singularity University, both in the Silicon Valley. In Latin America, Moncayo has found the first Entrepreneurs' Academy in Ecuador. In his words, "this is not an initiative that aims to compete with business schools, but should be considered as an ally. It is supposed to bring successful entrepreneurs, even better if they have failed before, to tell their stories, to talk about difficulties, challenges and potential solutions". Moncayo thinks it is an alternative to the classic classroom education, where a professor explains cases of success, with no experience of a failure.Either way, Sanchez and Moncayo agree that any entrepreneurial culture must emerge bottom up; it cannot be imposed from the top with any intention of immediate results.