In the September 21, 2001 Issue:

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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NSF Awards $65 Million for Nano Centers 
Earlier this week, the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced awards estimated to total $65 million over five years to fund six major centers in nanoscale science and engineering. The awards are part of a series of NSF grants – totaling $150 million in fiscal year 2001 alone – for nano research in multiple disciplines. 

The six centers will be located at Columbia and Cornell Universities and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York, Harvard University in Massachusetts, Northwestern University in Illinois, and Rice University in Texas. 

Nanoscale science, engineering and technology are focused on a scale ranging from the size of individual atoms to that of large molecules. The new Nanoscale Science and Engineering Centers will develop new areas of research and help establish a nanotechnology workforce. The centers, intended to address challenges and opportunities that are too complex and multi-faceted for individual researchers or small teams to tackle in shorter periods of time, are expected to significantly advance the information, medical, manufacturing and environmental technologies. Other NSF grants will fund small, interdisciplinary research teams and individuals doing exploratory research in a wide range of areas. 

Working in partnerships with industry, national laboratories and other sectors, the centers will support education programs from the graduate to the pre-college level designed to develop a highly skilled workforce, advance pre-college training, and advance the public understanding of science and engineering. 

The six centers and their awards are: 

More information on the NSF nanotechnology initiative can be found online at:
http://www.nsf.gov/home/crssprgm/nano/start.htm 

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Butler County Lays Out $100 Million Tech Strategy 
In an effort to create a high tech center, officials in Ohio's Butler County anticipate spending more than $100 million during the next five years to increase telecommunications, biomedical innovations, electronic commerce, and other research. Funding for the measure would come from as much as a half-penny sales tax hike, according to a story published August 1 by the Cincinnati Enquirer. 

Butler County already has approved $2.7 million for an 86-mile fiber-optic network, the article reports. Another $113 million in matching funds may come from the State of Ohio for related projects, including start-up help for high-tech entrepreneurs and the construction of highways to improve transportation. Technical assistance also is coming from the Milken Institute, a California-based company paid almost $300,000 in 2000 to develop a high-technology plan for the Butler County economy and to assist in its implementation. 

Similar to other areas in the U.S., Butler and the surrounding region have faced a brain drain. The Ohio county saw a 4.9 percent drop in 20-to-34 year olds between 1990 and 2000, despite being home to Miami University in Oxford and near the major metropolitan areas Cincinnati and Dayton. The tax hike has been endorsed by two of the three Butler County Commissioners. 

For more information, visit the commissioners' home page: http://www.butlercountyohio.org/commissioner/ 

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International Contributions to Understanding and Encouraging Cluster Formation 
Whether it's called clusters or localization economies, the aggregation of firms in the same or closely related industries has captured the attention of many state and local tech-based economic development efforts. Understanding the phenomenon and formulating effective public policy to encourage or support clustering presents challenges for practitioners and researchers alike. 

In addition to works on the topic previously covered in the Digest and available in SSTI’s Bookstore (such as Michael Porter’s On Competition or Ross DeVol’s Blueprint for a High-Tech Cluster), localization economies also have captured the research interests of international researchers. For example, the Canadian Innovations Systems Research Network (ISRN) is in the process of conducting a five-year $2.5 million (Canadian) study to examine the impact and importance of cluster-driven innovation in Canada. According to the ISRN website, Innovation Systems and Economic Development: The Role of Local and Regional Clusters in Canada will “investigate how local networks of firms and supporting infrastructure of institutions, businesses and people in communities across Canada interact to spark economic growth.” The dynamics of 20 different clusters across five regions and in both rural and urban economies will be examined through the project. 

For the project, ISRN is holding conferences and workshops to review and discuss localization research conducted across the world. Several of the working papers presented at the 2001 ISRN annual meeting may be of interest to Digest readers, including: 

These papers, as well as several others, are available online at the ISRN website: 
http://www.utoronto.ca/isrn/working_papers.htm

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TA Examining American IT Workforce Programs 
The development and application of new information technologies across virtually every segment of the American economy has resulted in rapid, sustained growth in demand for highly skilled information technology (IT) workers. The Department of Labor estimates between 1983 and 1998 the number of high-skilled IT workers increased from 719,000 to 2,084,000 – an increase of 190 percent, more than six times the overall U.S. job growth rate during this period. 

Rapid growth is expected to continue into the foreseeable future. The Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) most recent ten-year employment projections indicate that the number of core IT workers – computer scientists, computer programmers, computer engineers, systems analysts, computer support specialists, and database administrators – will rise from 2.2 million in 1998 to 3.9 million in 2008. Another 300,000 will be needed to replace those leaving the field during this period. 

As part of a Congressionally mandated study on America’s competitiveness, the Technology Administration (TA) of the U.S. Department of Commerce invites public comment before November 9, 2001, on existing public and private high-tech workforce training programs in the United States. This study and report will focus on the education and training paths and programs through which Americans prepare for IT jobs and maintain the skills needed in an ever-changing information technology environment. 

A series of questions has been developed for the project to help elicit public response. The questionnaire is available as an Internet-based form that can be completed and submitted online: http://www.ta.doc.gov/ittraining/

All comments received will be posted on the TA website and may be used in a report to Congress. 

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Ag-Related Tech-based ED Shorts 

The 2001 Farm Bill 
H.R. 2646, awaiting action by the full U.S. House of Representatives, includes authorization language to provide $50 million in funding for the Value-Added Grants Program to provide grants for start-up, farmer-owned, value-added processing facilities. The bill also would provide authorization for regionally planned rural development pilot programs and would continue the Research Initiative for Future Agricultural Systems at a program level of $145 million per year for fiscal years 2004 through 2011. The press release for the version of the bill approved by the House Agriculture Committee can be found at: http://agriculture.house.gov/press/pr010727.html 

According to an August 26 Des Moines Register interview with Senator Tom Harkin, chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, the Senate version of the bill, currently before the committee, would authorize $150 million for matching funds to support equity investments in value-added agriculture. 

Georgia 
A September 13 wire story from the Associated Press reports a new $1 million center to support the growth of agriculture-technology businesses and entrepreneurs is to be built in Tifton. According to the article, the center will be affiliated with the state’s Advanced Technology Development Center and will include 10,000 sq. ft. of incubator space. Tenants of the center, to be located near the National Environmentally Sound Production Agriculture Laboratory, also will be able to take advantage of nearby business and research connections at the University of Georgia’s Coastal Plan Experiment Station, Rural Development Center and the two-year Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. 

Kansas 
The Topeka Capital-Journal reported on September 9 that the Kansas Technology Enterprise Corporation received a $50,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development grant and loan program to support technical assistance to determine the market potential of inventions. Additionally, Kansas State University received a $220,000 grant to improve ongoing cooperative development and value-added technical assistance to agricultural coops. 

New Jersey 
Rutgers University, with the help of a $500,000 grant from the state, is launching the Millennium Viability Initiative, a multi-faceted program to provide technical and financial assistance to farmers and ag-businesses to help them identify new markets and develop valued-added products. The center will be tied to the college's new Food Industry Research and Extension Center. An incubator is in the planning stages as well for the center. More information is available at http://www.viability.rutgers.edu/ 

South Dakota 
South Dakota Ag Producer Ventures (SDAPV) will receive $203,500 from the state’s Value-Added Ag Subfund to develop new, farmer-owned dairy investment opportunities for local producers and to attract out-of-state dairy operators to South Dakota. Administered by the Governor's Office of Economic Development, the $3 million Value-Added Ag Subfund has been operational for more than a year and is designed to support feasibility and marketing research for ag processing projects. 

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Web Site of Tech Resources for Nonprofits Launched 
Declaring September “Nonprofits & Technology Month,” the Foundation Center has launched a website presenting myriad financial and technical assistance resources to support the acquisition and use of information technology in nonprofit organizations. Included in the site are several categories including: Community Development Resources; Corporate Funders; Digital Divide Resources; Disability Resources; Federal Government Resources; Foundations; E-Philanthropy Resources; Other Funding Sources; Software/Hardware Resources; Technology Assistance and Training Resources; Technology News, Newsletters, and Online Forums; Telecommunications Resources; and Web Development Resources. The site is http://fdncenter.org/pnd/npotech/ 

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SSTI Conference Rescheduled for December 3-4 
SSTI’s fifth annual conference, Creating Opportunity: Tools for Building Tech-based Economies, has been rescheduled for December 3-4. The agenda and location of the conference remain the same. At this time, we have confirmed the availability of the vast majority of our speakers; those that have not been confirmed are listed as invited on the agenda web-page (see http://www.ssti.org/Conf01/agenda.htm [expired] for the updated information). 

While the riverboat cruise has been cancelled, we are planning a set of optional post-conference in-depth workshops for the afternoon of December 4. More information will be provided as soon as details are finalized. 

Since the event was sold out and because we've received only a few cancellations for the December 3-4 dates, we will not be printing any new, revised promotional materials. The website remains the best source of information for the event. 

Changing the date does provide us more space at the hotel, allowing us to accommodate approximately 30 more registrants. We anticipate the conference will again sell out soon as people become aware of the availability and the new dates. If you haven’t registered yet and would like to, please visit: https://www.ssti.org/registration01.htm [expired]

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