Partnerships for Innovation (PFI), a National Science Foundation (NSF) program started just last year, has released its Program Solicitation for FY 2001. The program will support 10-15 new government-university-industry partnerships that explore new approaches to support and sustain innovation. An academic institution must be the lead for the partnership
The program was designed to:
The Wyoming legislature wrapped up its 2001 General Session on March 1. Several laws and supplemental appropriations were made that affect local efforts to grow a stronger tech-based economy.
Senate Enrolled Act (SEA) 10 permits the Wyoming Business Council to use state funds to provide bridge financing to businesses, not to exceed 35 percent of the total cost of any particular project.
The U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has selected six more incubators to join the National Alliance of Clean Energy Business Incubators, formed by NREL in April 2000. Alliance member incubators will focus on accelerating the growth and development of U.S.
There is often a disconnect between government policies to encourage entrepreneurship and the actual practice of launching fast growing companies, according to the fourth major report from the National Commission on Entrepreneurship (NCOE). Five Myths about Entrepreneurs: Understanding How Businesses Start and Grow is being released to educate policymakers about the vitally different characteristics of entrepreneurs and traditional small business owners.
The state-by-state results for the 2000 SBIR Phase I awards — as reported individually by the 10 participating federal agencies and compiled by SSTI --- are presented in the accompanying table. Totals may not reflect new awards or cancellations made by an agency after the initial selection announcements. Abstract information for funded SBIR projects may be obtained on each agency’s SBIR website.
Editor’s Note: For the skeptical Digest reader that viewed our assertion in last week’s issue that there is an average of at least one incubator-related article published somewhere in the country each day. Since we have several clippings on hand, it is easy to provide more examples of the continuing explosion of communities and states using non-profit incubators as tools for developing and expanding tech-based economies.
President Bush has nominated Los Angeles resident Hector Barretto to serve as Administrator of the Small Business Administration.
Philip Psilos is the new Director of Economic & Technology Policy for the National Governors' Association.
Timothy A. Klein has been selected to become the Associate Administrator for Innovation, Research, and Education for the U.S. Department of Transportation.
President Bush has nominated Los Angeles resident Hector Barretto to serve as Administrator of the Small Business Administration.
Philip Psilos is the new Director of Economic & Technology Policy for the National Governors' Association.
Timothy A. Klein has been selected to become the Associate Administrator for Innovation, Research, and Education for the U.S. Department of Transportation.
SSTI extends its congratulations to Bruce Gjovig, Director of the Center for Innovation in Grand Forks, North Dakota, for his induction into the North Dakota Entrepreneur Hall of Fame.
With the slowdown in the economy, there is widespread concern about the kind of painful belt-tightening which occurred in the states in the early 1990s. Because of this perception and the rapid change in so many states’ fiscal situations, the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) released this week a new survey to update its January 4, 2001, State Fiscal Outlook for 2001.
On February 26, President Bush issued a memorandum to 21 departments, agencies and other executive offices to create an Interagency Working Group on Federalism. The group is to:
a) Identify initiatives that promote principles of federalism, such as:
The headlines of many tech and business publications scream of massive Internet incubator layoffs, closures, and restructuring. The rapid rise and fall of these organizations has left some local tech-based economic development practitioners wondering if encouraging the growth of incubator facilities is a worthwhile strategy to pursue.
The National Science Foundation has published online the latest edition of the annual series: Science & Engineering State Profiles: 1998-99. By presenting one-page statistical summaries for each state, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, Profiles provides rankings, state and US figures for easy reference across 30 science and engineering statistics as well as the distribution of federal R&D obligations by department and performer.
With the 1994 School-to-Work Opportunities Act sunsetting this year and the increasing importance of developing a skilled workforce for a tech-based economy, many are asking if the initiatives launched or expanded by the Act have been successful.
The South Carolina Technology Alliance calls it the most significant victory for South Carolina's research universities and tech entrepreneurs in the last 50 years. An idle exaggeration? Probably not.
With the recent passage of much economic development legislation in South Dakota, Gov. Mike Rounds' 2010 Initiative would seem to be moving along as planned. The 2010 Initiative, an economic stimulus plan introduced last fall, outlines a series of goals for growth in South Dakota by the year 2010 (see the Oct. 31, 2003, issue of the Digest).
The Indiana General Assembly recently passed legislation that would make permanent a 10 percent research and development (R&D) tax credit, if signed by Gov. Joe Kernan.
The creation and subsidization of CAPCOs, certified capital corporations intended to encourage venture capital (VC) investment, is one of the more controversial policies some states have adopted to encourage the growth of tech-based economies. With substantial revisions to Colorado's short CAPCO experiment this month, questions are raised once again for other states that either have passed or are considering various approaches to increasing the availability of risk capital for new tech firms.
Legislators in Utah have passed a constitutional amendment that, with approval by voters, would allow the state's universities to take ownership in private businesses in exchange for intellectual property. The proposed amendment cleared the Utah State Legislature with relative ease, despite some concerns it will thwart the incentive of researchers wanting to commercialize their results.
With the goal of encouraging interdisciplinary and collaborative research, the Research Business Models Subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) has issued a list of initiatives to improve management of academic research grants made by various agencies of the federal government. The recommendations are also expected to result in greater consistency across agencies in award policies and reporting requirements.
With contributions of nearly $64 billion annually to the gross state product, manufacturing remains the largest of all industry sectors in Pennsylvania, according to a new report sponsored by the Team Pennsylvania Foundation. Data released by the nonprofit public-private partnership documents the role of manufacturing in Pennsylvania and analyzes the forces shaping the future of the industry.
The Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MTC) announces the creation of the Innovation Systems Division and a unique economic development initiative, the John Adams Innovation Institute, a vehicle for the state to make strategic investments in its knowledge economy.
Two new Governors, Bob Wise of West Virginia and Wisconsin's Scott McCallum, have put tech-based economic development in the forefront of their respective economic agendas.
West Virginia