SSTI Digest

The Association of American Universities has posted the text of a September 17 letter written by Rita Colwell, Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF), that outlines the Bush Administration's opposition to S. 2817, a bill to double the size of the NSF budget over a five-year period. A similar effort has been introduced in the House by Science Committee Chairman Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY) and co-sponsored by members of both parties (see May 10, 2002 SSTI Weekly Digest).

The Colwell letter was sent to Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), chair of the Subcommittee on Science, Technology, and Space, Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. In it, Director Colwell states:

The future of Virginia's Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) became clearer on Wednesday with Governor Mark Warner's release of Commonwealth of Virginia Strategic Plan for Technology for 2002-2006. CIT has a lead position for half of the eight initiatives outlined in the 129-page document.

Highlights of "One Virginia," CIT's portion of the plan, call for:

Following President Bush's call for the nation to "be aggressive about the deployment of broadband," the Technology Administration within the U.S. Department of Commerce recently issued Understanding Broadband Demand — a 25-page paper examining the state of broadband demand and usage in the U.S. and identifying successes, challenges and actions to promote more aggressive uptake.

After several expert roundtables, TA concluded that, while significant supply side issues such as regulatory considerations remain, "(T)he factor most likely to accelerate broadband demand is the creation and deployment of easily understood, value-adding business and consumer applications at prices that meet the needs of the market."

Joined by actor Christopher Reeve and several of California's leading biotech researchers, Governor Gray Davis Sunday signed legislation designed to promote stem cell research in California.

"Stem cell research is responsible research that could potentially save millions of lives," said Gov. Davis. "With world-class universities, top-flight researchers and a thriving biomedical industry, California is perfectly positioned to be a world leader in this area. I am determined to keep California at the forefront of medical research and scientific innovation."

On Thursday, Illinois Governor George Ryan announced nearly $3 million in state grants for eight Illinois Technology Enterprise Corporation (ITEC) centers, quadrupling the number of ITECs. Funded by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs (DCCA), the centers assist technology-based start-up businesses and serve as incubators for the new ventures.

The grants announced for the centers will continue to fund operations at Northwestern University in Evanston and the University of Illinois in Champaign and support six new centers in Chicago, Naperville, Lemont, Peoria, Carbondale and Springfield.

A $500,000 state grant approved Thursday by South Dakota Governor Bill Janklow will help create a center in Sioux Falls for fledgling technology businesses.

The center — termed the technology business accelerator project — is being developed by Forward Sioux Falls, a joint-venture economic development partnership between the Sioux Falls Area Chamber of Commerce and the Sioux Falls Development Foundation. The center will offer leased space and provide business development services such as accounting, legal assistance and business planning.

To date, Forward Sioux Falls has raised approximately $2.5 million for the project. The funding includes the new state grant, a federal grant of $800,000 and $1.2 million of Forward Sioux Falls IV funds. The state grant comes from the South Dakota Future Fund.

Cluster-based economic development policy has gained wide acclaim in recent years as interest has grown in utilizing “cluster theory” in economic development. Some have found this idea to be appealing while others have been a bit less receptive of its ideas. Three recently released papers address cluster-based economic development from different angles. The first article explores options for utilizing cluster-based economic development in less advantaged regions. The second examines into evaluation techniques of cluster policy, while the third addresses concerns about “cluster theory” in general. Each is summarized below.

A regional partnership of economic development organizations, led by the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), announced the launch of the Northwest Technology Investor Network last week. The network is an online forum that links investors and entrepreneurs in the high-tech sector.

"Technology-based businesses and manufacturers from throughout the Northwest can post their business plans on the Web site, connecting them to a nationwide network of accredited investors. Investors have one-stop access to quality business plans in the high-tech sector," said Gary Spanner, manager of PNNL's Economic Development Office.

The network is hosted by LocalFund, a nationally recognized company that hosts investor networks throughout the U.S.

True technology growth for Orange County hinges on a broader, more supportive infrastructure, argues the latest research report by the Los Angeles Regional Technology Alliance (Larta).

Raising the Curtain: The Technology Economy of Orange County examines the state of the region's health and stability, the obstacles that curtail its growth, and the strengths that will help move it forward as a leading economic and technology destination.

Backed by technology industries in electronics, computer hardware, bioscience, telecommunications and computer software, Orange County's diverse economy positions it "to be more stable and resilient than many other well known technology regions, such as Silicon Valley," the report states.

From angel capital to university technology commercialization, there are myriad facets to technology-based economic development (TBED). The key to success lies in a solid understanding of your respective element of the field — from grasping the policy issues to developing effective programs and practices to implementing sound evaluation techniques.

While the SSTI Weekly Digest and SSTI's annual conferences are designed specifically to help you in your quest for economic growth through science and technology, we recognize there are additional tools you need for your job. So, we've compiled a catalog of 116 of the best titles currently available to assist the TBED community.

The SSTI Weekly Digest and Funding Supplement will not be published next week as the office will be closed during SSTI's 6th Annual Conference, Building Tech-based Economies: From Policies to Practice on October 1-3.

The next issue of the SSTI Weekly Digest will be released on October 11.