BIO Conference Provides PR Opportunity, Deadline for TBED Initiatives

The annual convention for the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) provides an opportunity each year for many attendees to announce new initiatives and reports in the field of life science research and bio-related TBED – sometimes blockbuster initiatives trying to create the most buzz during and after the event. For example, at this year’s recently concluded event in San Diego, with more than 20,000 attendees representing 48 states and 70 countries, Maryland and Massachusetts announced biotech initiatives topping the $1 billion mark (see the June 18, 2008 issue of the Digest).
 
Not all of the announcements were attached to expensive price tags. Some involved increased collaboration and cooperation to promote the research strengths of the collective members or to market the geographic area. Examples include:
 
On the research collaboration side, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ontario’s Premier Dalton McGuinty announced Canada’s injection of $100 million into a Canadian-California Cancer Stem Cell Consortium based in Toronto. The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, the entity responsible for distributing the state’s $3 billion 10-year stem cell commitment, is matching the Canadian investment within the California research community. The Ontario Institute for Cancer Research will oversee the collaboration efforts. According to the press releases, 70 percent of North America’s stem cell research is conducted within California and Ontario.
 
Three life sciences associations – BayBio, BIOCOM, and the Southern California Biomedical Council (SoCalBio) – announced the formation of the California Life Science Alliance, a partnership between the three organizations headquartered in San Francisco, San Diego, and Los Angeles respectively. According to a press release, the alliance will concentrate its efforts on policy issues and advocacy at the state and federal levels, in addition to joint participation in biotechnology conferences and sharing purchasing opportunities.
 
In 2009, the International BIO Conference will head to Georgia, home to the “Innovation Crescent” – a new multi-regional biotechnology initiative covering 13 counties from metro Atlanta and east to Athens. In January, Gov. Sonny Perdue and the Governor’s Office of Workforce Development provided a $500,000 grant to assist this initiative. The Innovation Crescent Regional Partnership includes Georgia Bio, the Georgia Department of Economic Development, and various regional economic development organizations and county chambers of commerce.
 
While the Innovation Crescent’s branding efforts are to market these 13 counties as the center of biotech companies and organizations in Georgia’s life science industry, a goal of the initiative from a workforce development perspective is to prepare people for careers in the life sciences, whether they be high school, community and technical college, or university students.