SSTI Digest

Recently, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED) announced its intention to release a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) in collaboration with the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s (EERE) Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office within the year. This FOA, titled “Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs” or “H2Hubs” will outline funding phases to promote the expansion of clean hydrogen energy and aid in the development of at least four clean hydrogen hubs throughout the U.S.

Funding for these H2Hubs will primarily come from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, or Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), which was signed by President Biden in November 2021. In the BIL, over $62 billion was allocated to DOE for investments in clean energy innovation and expansion. Among this $62 billion, about $8 billion is specifically appropriated over five years to support expanding the hydrogen economy and building H2Hubs. These hubs are defined by the DOE as a network of clean energy producers, consumers, and relevant infrastructure in a region.

A recent paper published at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta (FRBA) highlighted that unlike prior recessions where men experienced unemployment at higher rates, COVID-19 had a much greater effect on women. Women constituted nearly 60 percent of net job loss despite making up 47 percent of pre-pandemic employment. Even among women, job loss was not uniform, with women who are also people of color experiencing even greater negative impacts.

Canadian provinces are overrepresented in North America’s most competitive states in the innovation economy with Ontario ranked third, British Columbia ranked fourth and Quebec ranked ninth, according to a competitiveness index from the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF). Massachusetts, California, Ontario and Maryland were named overall leaders in subnational innovation competitiveness.

Accounting for 28 percent of global economic output, North America contains diverse innovation ecosystems and forms one of the largest free trade zones in the world, which makes it a critical subject of study in regards to the innovation economy. The North American Subnational Innovation Competitiveness Index (NASICI) released this week by ITIF ranked North American states overall and used 13 indicators under three categories: knowledge-based workforce, globalization and innovation capacity, in order to rank innovation competitiveness.

During the SBIR/STTR Spring Innovation Conference, the U.S. Small Business Administration hosted a keynote session titled, “SBIR at 40 – What’s Next?” Panelists, moderated by SBA’s Erick Page-Littleford, discussed the impact that the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs have had over their 40 years of existence, and what the future may hold.

Two recent reports reveal U.S. standing in different global innovation spheres. The U.S. performance in advanced industries has been weak over the last two decades compared to other nations, finds a new Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) report that calls for an economic “moon shot” initiative to help boost U.S. performance. Meanwhile, new regions are entering the top 10 global startup ecosystems but Silicon Valley remains at the top, according to a recent report from Startup Genome.

The venture development organizations BioCrossroads, BioSTL, JumpStart, and LaunchNY recently published their economic impact reports for 2021. These organizations primarily assist businesses from Indiana, Missouri, Ohio, and New York respectively.

Three states — Indiana, California and Arkansas — have recently participated in international diplomacy, creating strategic connections and developing agreements to address climate change and trade barriers with the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Canada. These recent agreements may suggest a shift toward innovation-focused diplomacy at the state level with nations across the globe.

An Indiana and the United Kingdom agreement is marked by the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU), which developed a framework to remove barriers to trade and investment. The MOU aims to allow businesses in the U.K. and Indiana to create jobs, export, invest, and expand. Both entities are specifically interested in promoting green trade and accelerating the development of clean technologies in their regions. The U.K. says it hopes to sign more MOUs this year, and Indiana serves as a strategic first choice with its strengths in advanced manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and renewable energy.

Between 2017 and 2021, 23 percent of proposals submitted to NASA for Phase I SBIR/STTR funding were approved (1,887 awards from 8,360 proposals). The acceptance rate for Phase II proposals, which are generally encouraged or discouraged based on Phase I outcomes, was 58 percent (791 of 1,359 approved).

The number of Phase I proposals varies greatly by state. At the upper end of the range, California-based companies submitted approximately 22 percent (1,847) of all Phase I applications to NASA, and Colorado-based companies submitted 8.6 percent (719). At the other end of the range, South Dakota and Puerto Rico both saw only 1 proposal each, while no company in Alaska, Iowa, Nebraska, or North Dakota submitted a proposal to NASA during this five-year period.

A recent study found that the use of industrial robots (UIR) can reduce a country’s overall ecological footprint while simultaneously promoting economic growth. This is through timesaving, green employment, and energy upgrading effects that increase as the level of economic development and human capital within the country increases. The researchers also observed that the effect of UIR in reducing the ecological footprint is more evident in countries that are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) – which includes some of the world’s most carbon-intensive nations. Therefore, UIR can simultaneously be used to further economic growth while increasing environmental protection and reducing contributions that accelerate climate change.

Venture development organizations in Pennsylvania and Columbus recently released their economic impact reports for 2021. The reports from Ben Franklin Technology Partners (BFTP) and Rev1 Ventures show creation and retention of more than 16,000 jobs, $2.1 billion in client revenue, and almost $1.2 billion in capital raised.

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners (BFTP), with four organizations located around the state, work with the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development to support innovative ideas that impact Pennsylvania’s economy. The 2021 Impact Report features data gathered from the four-center Ben Franklin network.   In the report, BFTP stated that their efforts helped create 2,438 jobs and retain 12,923 jobs by client companies. Additionally, BFTP helped launch 380 new products and processes and form 87 new companies. BFTP also helped client companies get 158 patents and software copyrights.

The Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Federal and State Technology (FAST) Partnership Program is now accepting applications for the FY 2022 competition. The FAST program provides matching funds to organizations to execute state/regional programs that increase the number of SBIR/STTR proposals leading to an increase in the number of SBIR/STTR awards from women, socially/economically disadvantaged individuals, and small businesses in underrepresented areas - typically rural states. Eligible applicants must be a public entity, organization or individual that intends to use this funding to provide outreach, financial support, and/or technical and business assistance to next generation R&D-focused small businesses in order to increase SBIR/STTR proposals and awards; and, must be endorsed by the appropriate state governor or their authorized designee as the only approved applicant from that state.

Spring college enrollment figures released last week by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center (Clearinghouse) showed a continued decline with postsecondary enrollment falling to 16.2 million, a 4.1 percent decline from the previous spring. Combined with the 3.5 percent drop in enrollment last spring, the Clearinghouse reported that the undergraduate student body is now 9.4 percent, or nearly 1.4 million students, smaller than before the pandemic.

Public sector two- and four-year colleges combined enrolled 71 percent of all students this spring, and experienced the steepest drop (5 percent), with community colleges falling 7.8 percent. Community colleges also suffered the greatest loss in full-time students, losing 168,000 students over the past year, amounting to a 20.9 percent loss (372,000 students) since spring 2020.