Competitiveness Council Sees Regional ED Efforts Playing Important Role

The past decade’s economic boom has masked some serious cracks in the foundation of U.S. competitiveness– and it will take a strong policy of local and regional “innovation stimulus” to get the country back on track, says the Council on Competitiveness in U.S. Competitiveness 2001: Strengths, Vulnerabilities and Long-term Priorities.



The report, co-authored by Michael Porter, a Harvard Business School professor and leading proponent of cluster-based economic development strategies, and Debra van Opstal, senior vice president at the Council, is one of a growing number to recognize the important role regional development organizations must play in future national innovation and competitiveness policy.



While the report highlights the role of innovation as a source of U.S. competitive advantage and a driver of productivity and growth, it warns of the implications of the drop in public investment in research and innovation as a share of national wealth during the past decade.



At the press announcement, Porter pointed out, that even while the country enjoyed the longest economic boom in its history, the continued widening of the gap between rich and poor household in the country was “especially troubling,” attributing the problem to the poor lacking the skills and education to participate fully in the economy. “Lack of educational opportunity further contributes to skills shortages in the workforce, especially in science and engineering,” Porter said.

The report identifies long-term policy priorities in three areas needed to ensure global leadership and a rising standard of living:

• maintaining world leadership in science and technology through increased R&D investment and enlarging the pool of American scientists and engineers;
• boosting overall workforce skills by strengthening K-12 math and science education, bringing under-represented populations into the science and engineering workforce, and providing more worker training and retraining opportunities; and, 
• strengthening regional clusters of innovations by raising awareness of the role of local drivers for innovation, increasing support for regional development organizations, identifying best practices to support regional cluster development, and expanding the national competitiveness and innovation policy to encompass the regional level.

U.S. Competitiveness 2001: Strengths, Vulnerabilities and Long-term Priorities is available for download at: http://www.compete.org