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The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) intends to publish a federal funding opportunity (FFO) in July 2016 for MEP Centers in the 11 states: Delaware, Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nevada, North Dakota, South Carolina and Wyoming. The objective of the MEP Center program is to provide business and technical services to small- and medium-sized manufacturers within the state of operation.

NASA is accepting applications for the Space Race Competition – a startup accelerator challenge that allows startups to license patented NASA technologies without any up-front costs and no minimum fees for up to three years.

What leading indicators allow a national, state, regional, or local economy to rebound from an exogenous shock (e.g., economic downturn or natural disaster)?

What risk factors are common among economies that were not resilient to an exogenous shock?

New Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau released his administration’s 2016 proposed budget last week which, if passed, would allocate significant funds to scientific research and technology-based economic development.

Although they represent a small proportion of the total number of institutions in the U.S. higher education system, the impact of public research universities is profound and widespread, according to a recently released report from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy). The report, which is divided in three sections, provides insight into how public research universities act as centers of discovery, drive economic development and social wellbeing, and serve their communities.

As you are likely aware, SSTI’s 2016 Annual Conference took place last week in Columbus, OH. The theme of Innovation with Purpose: Shaping Future Opportunities was addressed throughout the agenda, and people were particularly struck by the need to better-orient programs and services to address “Innovation’s Blindspot,” as defined during the keynote talk delivered by Ross Baird of Village Capital. During other moments in the conference, such as policy-focused discussion groups and sessions on improving metrics and communications, attendees were directly called to take actions that would benefit their programs and customers, as well as the innovation community as a whole.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) estimates that U.S. research and development (R&D) funding reached an all-time high of $499.3 billion in 2015 – an increase of approximately $21.6 billion over 2014 levels ($477.7 billion). The $21.6 billion increase marks the third time in three years that overall U.S. R&D funding grew by more than $20 billion – $20.4 billion in 2013 and $21.1 billion in 2014.

As the United States undergoes a political transition, much remains to be seen in how the Trump Administration will approach the economy. One way to support economic development on both a federal and regional level is by leveraging research and development. Building capacity for scientific research is an underlying principle of the Innovative Science and Technology for Economic Prosperity (iSTEP) model – a comprehensive policy platform for converting the United States’ strength in R&D into greater economic prosperity – which has received bipartisan support from an overwhelming majority of voters. Roughly three-fourths of prospective voters in the 2016 presidential election support increasing federal funding for research, according to bipartisan polling supported by the Innovation Advocacy Council, an initiative of SSTI. Recent research also shows that scientific R&D grants distributed at the federal level can have significant effects on regional economies.

In a special feature this week, SSTI will examine a developing technology advancement that has been increasingly drawing public attention. This is the first of a two-part series examining blockchain and its implications for business and industry, with today’s story focusing on the technology, while next week will focus on its applications and challenges.

President-elect Donald Trump made strong appeals during his campaign to restore economic opportunity for workers, particularly those displaced by changes in the manufacturing and energy sectors. An economy driven by transforming America’s scientific research into good-paying jobs and high-growth businesses would deliver on the promises Trump made to voters. SSTI has a policy agenda to provide entrepreneurs and investors with the support they need to make this transition to an innovation economy.

Bond issues supporting higher education goals got mixed results in Tuesday’s election. A bond issue in Rhode Island to be used for the renovation and construction of the University of Rhode Island’s College of Engineering buildings was a winner in this year’s election, receiving 59.3 percent approval. The bond issue that would have created the Montana Biomedical Research Authority was not as lucky, with 56.9 percent of voters there rejecting the measure.

Twelve gubernatorial seats were up for election Tuesday, five of which were held by incumbents seeking reelection. Four of those – Montana Gov. Steve Bullock (D), Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D), Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R) and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D) – were reelected for second terms. In North Carolina, Democratic candidate and State Attorney General Roy Cooper has a lead of less than one percent over incumbent Gov. Pat McCrory. Gov. McCrory has not conceded and the result is pending a canvass of votes, which may not be complete until November 18.

Regional activities supporting innovation and entrepreneurship are reaching across U.S. borders, forming new partnerships with organizations from neighboring countries to broaden their impact and leverage their strengths. Beyond traditional trade relationships, these activities are promoting new opportunities for longer term collaborations with potential to benefit the U.S. and its neighbors.

Over the last two months, the Economic Development Administration (EDA) has made nearly $35 million in investments intended to spur economic prosperity across the country including nearly $28 million for communities impacted by transformations in the energy industry. These efforts are intended to unlock the potential of regional assets including community members, local institutions of higher education, and regional industies by funding entrepreneurship, innovation, research and development (R&D) activities, and other capacity-building efforts.

The growth and intensity of higher education R&D (HERD) expenditures varies considerably across metropolitan areas, a recent SSTI analysis of National Science Foundation data finds. New York ($4.3 billion), Boston ($3.2 billion), and Baltimore ($2.9 billion) had the highest overall levels of HERD expenditures in 2016. In that same year, Ithaca, New York (19.1 percent), State College, Pennsylvania (9.5 percent), and College Station, Texas (9.4 percent) had the highest levels of HERD intensity – measured as the share of HERD expenditures to gross metropolitan product.

Mentoring programs may be celebrated across the nation as January marks National Mentoring Month, a movement started in 2002 to raise awareness of mentoring in all its forms. But more could be done to make programs more effective in both university and non-university settings, according to a recent working paper from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan.

Last week, the Department of Defense (DoD) released a public announcement on the launch of a new pilot program that supports university-industry basic research collaborations focused on the discovery of novel solutions to challenging defense and national security problems. SSTI members, however, were alerted to the release of the Federal Funding Opportunity (FFO) for the pilot program in a December edition of the SSTI Funding Supplement.

The American Institute of Physics reports that National Institute of Standards and Technology Director Walter Copan expressed interest in reviewing the Bayh-Dole and Stevenson-Wydler acts for possible revisions. Both pieces of legislation were passed in 1980 to facilitate the transfer of discoveries from the public to the private sector. Copan did not indicate specific changes but mentioned conflicts between federal and state law as a problem.

States are beginning their next round of budget proposals, following last year’s cautious approach to budgeting. SSTI begins its review of the proposals this week, presenting findings on how states are funding elements of the innovation economy with a review of Alaska, Colorado, Florida and Wyoming state budgets.

SSTI’s Tech Talkin’ Govs feature returns as governors across the country roll out their state of the state addresses. We review each speech for comments relevant to the innovation economy, and bring you their words directly from their addresses. In this first installment, we present excerpts from governors in Arizona, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Mississippi, New York and Vermont.

For the first time in five years, federal funding for higher education research and development increased in both current and constant dollars, according to recently released data from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics within the National Science Foundation. In FY 2016, universities reported $72.0 billion in total R&D expenditures, a 4.8 percent increase from FY 2015. Of this amount, more than half (54 percent) came from the federal government.

The United Kingdom government recently released a new industrial strategy that outlines a number of striking commitments. These include a plan to increase R&D spending from 1.7 percent to 2.4 percent of GDP, £406 million for STEM training, £1 billion for network infrastructure and a new £2.5 billion investment fund. Like many similar U.S.

This article is part one of a two part series focused on the intersection between economic opportunity and the economic development practice.  

Two recent reports detail the changing nature of jobs and highlight the importance of digital skills for the workforce. To guard against a greater income divide and ensure a competitive workforce, the studies — one from Brookings and the other from the McKinsey Global Institute — outline policy prescriptions that may ease the transition.

Tuesday’s announcement by Revolution of the creation of a $150 million Rise of the Rest Seed Fund for companies located outside of Silicon Valley builds on Steve Case’s tour to connect with entrepreneurs throughout the middle of the country. The Rise of the Rest Seed Fund enjoys the backing of more than three dozen other big investors from Jeff Bezos and Eric Schmidt to the Waltons and Kochs, and is intended to provide support and connections to entrepreneurs in small towns and underserved cities.