"You have to put something out into the universe in order to get it back," Deyvis Rodriguez, founder of the Latino tech start-upStellar Collective, told the Latin Post.

Fresh from attending the pre-SXSW Latin@s in Tech conference, hosted by the Kapor Center for Social Impact in partnership with Kety Esquivel, Principal of Esquivel McCarson Consulting, as well as SXSW Interactive in Austin, Texas, Rodriguez did just that -- he shared his passion for creating an online platform for aspiring Latino creatives to connect and thrive, and in return he gained an invaluable wealth of knowledge, an expanded network and a newfound sense of inspiration.

Rodriguez, who is of Nicaraguan and El Salvadorian descent, is the founder of Stellar Collective, "a Latino tech start-up that aims to amplify an online movement that is already occurring in under-served communities composed of multicultural millennials." (The innovative platform is slated to launch in the upcoming months.)

And that community is "uniting via technology to inspire, educate, and partner with each other," Rodriguez explained. "We share our stories on who we are and what we do to empower ourselves and build better leaders both in our communities and in business."

Stellar Collective's "tech platform will live online both on desktop, mobile, and most importantly social media -- all environments where we are natives and early adopters to the technology."

Prior to attending the pre-SXSW Latin@s in Tech conference and SXSW Interactive, Rodriquez spent the past three months traveling the country interviewing young people of color who are creating amazing and powerful projects and leveraging technology.

While on his enlightening journey, not only has he learned a lot about himself, but he's witnessed "how passionate and fearless Latinos (and people of color) are," and that there are "fantastic opportunities to unite these under-served communities via Stellar Collective's platform."

Recently, Rodriguez held a community forum in Harlem where 15 creative leaders from all over New York City gathered to share their stories and resource needs. He was amazed to learn of the caliber of their talent and how the exchange of each other's resources empowered them to further improve their craft.

"Every person came with a need and when they left the forum they had at least one resource to help -- all connected via social media and online. We would like to scale this effort nationally," Rodriguez said.

This sense of community-building and outreach was reiterated during the pre-SXSW Latin@s in Tech conference and SXSW Interactive, which has more of a global focus this year.

Today, more multicultural participants are leveling the playing field and learning how to leverage technology not only to better themselves, but their businesses and start-ups, thus becoming more competitive contenders in the industry, Rodriguez points out.

For like-minded Latino entrepreneurs and millenials, the takeaway from both events was monumental.

There was an "amazing group" of national Latino leaders, political leaders as well as philanthropic Hollywood celebrities, such as actress and Voto Latino trailblazer Rosario Dawson, who attended the pre-SXSW Latin@s in Tech as well as SXSW Interactive.

Rodriguez pointed out some of the more powerful panels during the Latin@s in Tech, conference, which included "What Would Cesar Chavez Tweet," pioneered by Chávez's son Paul, which was held in partnership with The Raben Group and featured case studies on Latino public policy campaigns and the use of social media.

The thought-provoking panel explored questions such as: "How would have our civil rights leaders, the trailblazers and visionaries that changed our nation in the last century used these social media tools? And "Would new media have made them more efficient, would they have had a more immediate impact, and could they have mobilized even greater droves of people?"

Diversity was in full-force at the Latin@s in Tech conference with Latino representation from all ethnicities, from across the country, from San Francisco and Oakland to New York and South Texas.

Another phenomenal aspect of the Latin@s in Tech conference was the huge presence of empowered women, exemplified by an increase in Latina participation, specifically working Latina moms launching tech start-ups, such as Las Comadres.

Other powerful workshops included: "At the Helm: Women's Impact in EdTech," featuring speaker Jennifer Argüello, where attendees heard from twelve exemplary women from across the education industry who shared stories of how they are "making the edtech industry grow, accelerate, and expand its impact."

There was also "The Latino Digital Landscape: Insights & Solutions," "Cause-Tech Startups: The Opportunity in Good" and "Diversifying The Tech Workforce." 

Besides the workshops, panels, advice on digital strategies and social impact Q&As, there was another important component that Rodriguez took away from the event that was simple in theory -- "you have to encourage people to reach out for help," he said.  

While conferences aren't always easy to access and can be expensive, Rodriguez points out that Latino millenials, do have a lot of say and impact in the United States - ultimately there's a lot of power in numbers.

"Technology really levels the playing field," he added.

Personally, Rodriguez says that another takeaway from the conference was a sense of motivation and the knowledge that there is "a community that I can lean on who is ready to help."

"I didn't understand how powerful the Latinos in tech movement is," he said. "I have a stronger sense of responsibility to promote multicultural millenials."

For more information or to join or partner up with Stellar Collective founder Deyvis Rodriguez, you can contact him via email at deyvis [at] stellarcollective [dot] com.