In the November 22, 2000 Issue:
- 2nd Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Released
- Maine's Public R&D Investments to be Evaluated
- SF: Addressing the Digital Divide on the Metro Level
- Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) Announced
- Funding Opportunities
Copyright State Science & Technology Institute 2002. Information in this issue of the SSTI Weekly Digest was prepared under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration. Redistribution to all others interested in tech-based economic development is strongly encouraged — please cite the State Science & Technology Institute whenever portions are reproduced or redirected. Any opinions expressed in the Digest do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
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2nd Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Released
Does the level of entrepreneurial activity vary between countries, and, if so, by how much? Does the level of entrepreneurial activity affect a country’s economic growth? What makes a country entrepreneurial? These questions are the focus of Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2000, (GEM 2000), a year-long study involving 43,000 individuals in 21 countries. Researchers also interviewed almost 800 experts and scholars on entrepreneurship across the world in preparation of the report.Key findings, many of which could also have relevance to regional differences in entrepreneurship across the US, include:
- Financial support is highly associated with the level of entrepreneurial activity. Venture capital investments accounted for 0.52 percent of the Gross Domestic Product in the United States, compared to Japan's 0.022 percent, the lowest rate found. The US led the world in this category.
- Measured by number of adults starting businesses and number of businesses that are less than 42 months old, GEM 2000 found entrepreneurial activity differs widely between countries. One out of every eight Brazilians are engaged in starting a business while only 1 out of 100 Japanese and Irish adults are doing the same. The rate in the United States, for comparison is 1 out of every 10.
- Globally, men are twice as likely as women to be entrepreneurs. Male dominance was greatest in France where the male to female ratio was 12:1.
- Entrepreneurship is highly correlated with education, economic growth, and social legitimacy or acceptance of entrepreneurship.
Six broad policy recommendations are made to encourage economic growth through entrepreneurship.
- "If the level of participation in post-secondary education were the only factor used to predict entrepreneurial activity, it would account for 40 percent of the difference between GEM countries. Providing individuals with quality entrepreneurship education (i.e., training in the requisite skills for converting a market opportunity into a commercial enterprise) was consistently one of the top priorities identified by the experts interviewed in each of the 21 countries.
- "Policies geared toward boosting entrepreneurial activity should not be confined to the entrepreneurship sector per se. From the GEM results it is clear that fundamental features of the wider economic system play a critical role. Countries with higher levels of entrepreneurial activity are characterized by comparatively lower levels of corporate and marginal personal income tax rates. The most entrepreneurially active countries also have a greater ease of doing business with the government, more flexible labor markets and lower levels of non-wage labor costs.
- "The perceived social legitimacy of entrepreneurship makes a difference. GEM 2000 used a variety of measures to determine the level of respect in the community for those starting businesses. The promotion of entrepreneurship, its role in society and the opportunities it presents for personal gain, appears to be critical for facilitating economic growth.
- "Policies geared toward enhancing the entrepreneurial capacity of a society (i.e., the skills and motivation to pursue opportunities) will have the greatest impact on the level of entrepreneurial activity.
- "Increasing the participation of women in entrepreneurship is necessary for long-term economic prosperity.
- "For the greatest long-term impact, policies should encourage the involvement of people younger than 25 and older than 44 in the entrepreneurial process.
- "Any government committed to sustained economic progress must ensure that all aspects of its economic system are conducive to and supportive of increased levels of entrepreneurial activity. This includes minimizing taxation, ensuring access to labor, lowering non-wage labor costs, reducing the regulatory burden and making it easier to do business with the government.
- "Policies should facilitate the development of a professional venture capital industry and create incentives for private individuals to invest directly in early-stage businesses."
The report also includes profiles of each of the 21 countries included in the study, as well as examples of several programs implemented to encourage entrepreneurship.
GEM 2000 was prepared by a research team from Babson College and the London Business School with support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. The full report can be downloaded from the National Commission on Entrepreneurship's website: http://www.ncoe.org/research/index.html.
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Maine's Public R&D Investments to be Evaluated
The Maine Science & Technology Foundation (MSTF) has issued a request for proposals to conduct an "Initial Evaluation of Maine's Public Investments in Research and Development." The study, to be completed by July 1, 2001, will provide baseline data for the first comprehensive evaluation MSTF is required by law to prepare for the state legislature and Governor by July, 2006. Subsequent comprehensive evaluations are to be completed every five years. The effort will:
- establish outcome measures considered appropriate by public and private practitioners in R&D and economic development;
- assess the competitiveness of technology sectors in Maine and the impact of R&D within the state on Maine economic development; and,
- include recommendations on existing and proposed state-supported R&D programs and activities affecting technology-based economic development.
To aid in the design and development of the initial evaluation, MSTF has prepared an Evaluation Guide which provides a framework for addressing the following three questions: How competitive is Maine’s state-sponsored R&D and has it improved over time? What is the impact of Maine’s R&D investments on the development of Maine’s R&D industry? What is the impact of Maine’s R&D investments on innovation and innovation-driven economic development in the State?
Letters of intent to submit a proposal are due to MSTF by December 15, 2000. Full proposals are due on January 15, 2001. The formal request for proposals can be found at: http://www.mstf.org/ Copies of the Evaluation Guide can be requested from Raffaella Dorazio at (207) 772-9241.
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SF: Addressing the Digital Divide on the Metro Level
Organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area will spend more than $20 million this year to bridge the digital divide, according to Who's Funding the Digital Connect?, a report released this month by the San Francisco Foundation. More than 54 organizations will provide computer access and/or training to more than 75,000 low income and underserved individuals in one of the most technology-savvy regions in the country, according to the study.The study provides a base inventory of the digital divide programs and services provided in the area, the sources and stability of funding, and critical gaps in both service delivery and funding. The San Francisco Foundation will use the information as a component of Digital Connect, a larger strategy to eliminate barriers to technology for low income, under-represented, and underserved communities.
Key findings include:
- Fifty percent of the funding came from government sources and 35 percent from foundations.
- Foundations provided twice as many grants as government sources, but the average grant amount was only one-third the size of government grants.
- Only 9 percent of the funding came from corporations and corporate foundations; however, corporations provided more than $3.2 million worth of in-kind services to local digital divide programs. Corporations also were less likely to support personnel costs than government or foundation sources of funding.
- Administrative overhead, competitive salaries, hardware upgrades, and life-skills support services for clients are the most difficult activities to fund, according to survey respondents.
- Three-quarters of the grants were for a single fiscal year. Seventy-one percent were project specific.
The structure of the grants, limited time frame, and use restrictions force the nonprofit organizations to spend considerable time seeking sources of funding and less on program and service delivery. The study found that two-thirds of the organizations target their computer assistance programs and services to youth. Most organizations offered other services to their target clients in addition to digital divide programs.
The report, which includes contact information for each of the Bay Area organizations, involved in addressing the divide, can be found at: http://www.sff.org
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Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) Announced
Twenty researchers supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) received the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers award late last month. The award is the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding scientists and engineers who are in the early stages of building their independent research careers. To receive the award, nominees must be NSF CAREER (Faculty Early Career Development) awards recipients. The CAREER award supports exceptionally promising college and university junior faculty who are committed to the integration of research and education. This year’s 20 recipients bring the total to 120 that have received the honor since it was established in 1996.
The recipients are:
- Sara C. Billey, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Reinhold Blumel, Wesleyan University
- Wilfredo Colón, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
- John N. DuPont, Lehigh University
- Carl T. Friedrichs, College of William and Mary
- Theresa Gaasterland, Rockefeller University
- Susan C. Hagness, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Youssef Hashash, University of Illinois, UrbanaChampaign
- Scott M. Husson, Clemson University
- Edwin C. Kan, Cornell University
- John David Kubiatowicz, University of California, Berkeley
- Alon Y. Levy, University of Washington
- Garrick E. Louis, University of Virginia
- Kwan-Liu Ma, University of California-Davis
- David L. Patrick, Western Washington University
- Georgia Perakis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Anne S. Robinson, University of Delaware
- Jenny R. Saffran, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Arthur R. Smith, Ohio University
- Kimberley A. Venn, Macalester College
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Funding Opportunities
Department of Energy
The National Energy Technology Laboratory has released a solicitation requesting research proposals for "Demonstration of Innovative, Improved Field Methods for In Situ Delineation and Assessment of Contamination Located In Difficult Subsurface Conditions at DOE Sites." Full proposals are due by December 8, 2000. Multiple awards of cost-plus fixed fee contracts for projects of 24-36 months are expected. The request for proposals is available at http://www.netl.doe.gov/business/solicit/index.htmlEnvironmental Protection Agency
The U.S.EPA invites research grant applications in the following areas of special interest to its mission: (1) Environmental Monitoring for Public Access and Community Tracking (EMPACT); (2) Children's Vulnerability to Toxic Substances in the Environment; (3) Research Program on Statistical Survey Design and Analysis for Aquatic Resources (joint with NASA); (4) Aggregate Exposure Assessment for Pesticides: Longitudinal Case Studies; (5) Ecological Indicators for Gulf of Mexico Estuaries; and (6) Environmental Statistics Center. Applications must be received as follows: February 21, 2001, for topic (1); February 28, 2001, for topic (2); March 1, 2001, for topic (3); March 7, 2001, for topic (4); March 8, 2001, for topic (5); and March 21, 2001, for topic (6). Areas of research interest, eligibility and submission requirements, evaluation criteria, and implementation schedules are in the formal requests for applications, which can be found at: http://www.epa.gov/ncerqa under ``announcements.''Multiple Federal Agencies
The National Center for Environmental Research/Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); the Coastal Ocean Program, and the Office of Protected Resources, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)/Department of Commerce; the Directorate for Geosciences, Division of Ocean Sciences/National Science Foundation (NSF); the Office of Naval Research (ONR)/Department of Defense; and the Office of Earth Science/National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are cooperating in an opportunity for investigators to propose research activities to address three primary areas in the national problem of Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs). Projects may last up to three years, and depending on appropriations up to five years for multidisciplinary regional studies. Academic and not-for-profit institutions located in the U.S., and state or local governments, are eligible under all existing authorizations. Some participating agencies are authorized to make awards to profit-making firms and international institutions. The deadline for proposals is January 31, 2001, by 3:00 PM, EST. The complete announcement program can be accessed at http://www.epa.gov/ncerqa under "announcements.''Return to the top of this page
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