SSTI Digest

Foreign-born and ethnic workers continue to rapidly grow in their importance to the U.S. innovation economy, according to two recent studies that address this issue by examining the links between these groups and patenting activity.

In How Much Does Immigration Boost Innovation?, Jennifer Hunt uses state panel data from 1950 to 2000 to measure the extent of immigration's impact on U.S. patenting, state innovation economies and the science and technology workforce. Foreign-born residents account for just over ten percent of the working population, but represent about 25 percent of the science and engineering workforce. The 2003 Survey of College Graduates found that immigrants patent at double the rate of native U.S. residents. That study found that the difference was attributable to disproportionate educational attainment in science and engineering.

According to figures released last week by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), 85 percent of the nation's 363 metro areas experienced growth in real GDP from 2005 to 2006. For the U.S. metro areas as a whole, the aggregate GDP in current dollars was $11.79 trillion in 2006 - about 90 percent of the U.S. GDP.

Trends in GDP growth can be more informative than one-year changes that might be caused by sudden changes in a local economy (e.g., Hurricane Katrina). SSTI has prepared a table displaying changes in metro area GDP estimates for the five-year period 2002 to 2006. To facilitate comparison across metro areas, the data has been presented in chained 2001 dollars.

The GDP in 23 metro areas decreased over the five years, 2002 to 2006, some like New Orleans and Gulfport-Biloxi for reasons related to the natural disaster. The decline in other metro areas may be more systemic as the local economies continue to restructure away from declining industrial sectors.

John Hindman announced his resignation as secretary of the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development.

Governor Rick Perry recently announced Alan Kirchhoff of Austin has been promoted to director of Texas Emerging Technology Fund (TETF). Kirchhoff replaces longtime Perry advisor and former TETF director Mark Ellison, who left the Governor's Office to become associate vice chancellor of economic development for the Texas A&M University System beginning Oct. 1, 2008.

Governor Jim Doyle appointed Richard Leinenkugel of the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing family as his Commerce secretary.

Thomas Peterson, dean of the College of Engineering at the University of Arizona, has been selected as the new assistant director of the National Science Foundation's Directorate for Engineering.

Elias Zerhouni, the director of the National Institutes of Health, announced his plans to step down at the end of October 2008.

Complete descriptions of these opportunities and others are available at http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm.

In an effort to keep science, innovation and entrepreneurship on the mind of our next President, several groups are releasing comparisons of the Presidential candidates' positions on a number of issues affecting state, local and university tech-based economic development strategies. Here is a sampling from this week:

Whether it's symptomatic of a tough job market or increased recognition of the economic rewards for obtaining an advanced degree, the number of doctoral degrees awarded and graduate enrollment in the U.S. rose sharply in 2007. Most trends for the past ten years also are positive; suggesting at first glance that a commitment to advanced education is permeating more of the population, particularly among women and minority groups.

Enrollment and awards of masters degrees are seeing much lower growth rates, and in some critical cases like engineering, experienced a decline. Consequently, rises in the number of engineering doctorates may be short-lived trends.

States are increasingly seeking new approaches to maintaining a pipeline of skilled workers, qualified to fill the gaps left by baby boomers retiring in the coming years and college graduates pursuing career options elsewhere. Over the past several years, state economic development agencies, nonprofit organizations, and industry-led groups have not only stepped up their efforts to recruit and retain high-tech workers, but also are examining the key factors involved in attracting high-tech workers to a region.

Recently, a privately-owned manufacturing contractor in Idaho announced a new initiative to build the skills of workers in rural areas of the state, which in turn will make the region more likely to attract new industries. Several partners have signed on to take part in the program, called Rural Idaho Outreach Partners, including the Idaho Department of Labor, the Idaho National Laboratory, and the Salmon Valley Business and Innovation Center.

Cluster strategies show proximity is seen as an important requirement for tacit knowledge flows and the resulting economic development benefits of innovation and entrepreneurship. Research by Barak Aharonson, Joel Baum, and Maryann Feldman showed spillover benefits of agglomeration for businesses are strongest within 500 meters of a site.

The benefits faded rapidly over distance - so is the reverse true? What happens when you put aspiring young entrepreneurs in the same dorm?

As news on the economy turns darker shades of bleak, communities across the country are looking for alternative ways to finance their innovation strategies. Some of their approaches will be the topic of two breakout sessions at SSTI's upcoming conference, Encouraging Regional Innovation. This story looks at one example. For more information on the conference, visit: http://ssticonference.org/

Following several weeks of deliberation over the past summer months, a panel of highly qualified TBED practitioners has selected recipients demonstrating exceptional achievement in approaches to building and sustaining tech-based economies to receive SSTI's Excellence in TBED Award for 2008.

The recipients will be announced at SSTI's 12th Annual Conference, to be held Oct. 14-16 at the Intercontinental Hotel Cleveland.

With a blockbuster agenda, the first block of hotel rooms already sold out and a second block in the nearby Intercontinental Suites filling rapidly, SSTI's 12th Annual Conference in Cleveland, Oct. 14-16, is on pace to be a very special event for those TBED practitioners and policymakers who wisely register soon!

Registrations for the premiere professional development event of the year for state, local and academic tech-based economic development professionals are streaming in faster than they did for last year's great conference in Baltimore. SSTI closed attendance last year at 375 to ensure the highest quality professional development experience possible for conferees.

Easily the TBED community's most complete conference ever, Encouraging Regional Innovation, SSTI's 12th annual conference, is already drawing participation from more than 40 states and several countries.

The early registration discounts for expire on Monday, Sept. 23, 2008 less than two short weeks away!

The most pressing question in the debate about the United States international economic competitiveness is if the U.S. is successfully pushing to maintain its competitive lead well into the future, not only the question if the U.S. is currently ahead, according to a report released today by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF). The latter concern, as related to comparative international science and technology prowess, and its implications for national security was the subject of a June 2008 report prepared by the RAND Corporation for the Office of the U.S. Secretary of Defense.