Imagine President Bush using his entire State of the Union Address to present a $23 billion five-year strategy to encourage research, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the country. While it has not received much press in the United States, the equivalent happened when Australian Prime Minister John Howard gave his annual Federation Address on January 29.

Science policy and tech-based economic development have taken center stage in Idaho with last week’s release of the Idaho Science and Technology Strategy and the supporting new initiatives included in Governor Dirk Kempthorne’s recent budget message.

Oklahomans need “to make fundamental changes in the way we see ourselves and the way we do things...to prevent us from slipping farther and farther behind, languishing on the sidelines of the New Economy,” according to a 14-member committee of public and private sector leaders. 

The Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST) is seeking a chief executive officer. OCAST's statutory mandate is to contribute to the public policy goals of expanding and diversifying Oklahoma=s economy, providing new and higher quality jobs to improve Oklahoma's per capita income and encouraging the development of new products, new processes, and whole new industries in Oklahoma. The full description can be found on the SSTI homepage at http://www.ssti.org

Two of the state-wide issues Oklahomans will decide on November 3 would allow major changes in the way the state conducts technology transfer activities. The purpose of the initiatives is to promote the commercialization of university research and support university innovation.

Eisenhower Exchange Fellowships announces a competition for U.S. citizens in leadership positions with significant professional experience (10-20 years) for Fellowships to:

With the establishment of a $1 million trust fund to serve as seed money, the new Oklahoma Institute of Technology intends to position the state as a national leader in information technology, engineering, and biotechnology. Governor Frank Keating signed Senate Bill 694 into law June 8, creating the public-private collaboration. Tulsa World news reports indicate supporters of the institute anticipate raising a $100 million endowment for the project and securing additional state support.

A new biotech-opolis in Quebec soon may serve as one of the best organized business centers for biotech, biopharmaceutical, and biocomputer companies in the world, government leaders hope.

It only seems natural that SSTI celebrate a decade of convening the premiere professional development event for the nation's tech-based economic development community in a state that, for nearly 20 years, has been a pioneer for innovative approaches to transform regional economies — Oklahoma. SSTI's 10th annual conference and pre-conference intensive workshops will be held at the Cox Convention Center in Oklahoma City on Oct. 31-Nov. 2.

Bill Shipp has been promoted to president and general manager of the Idaho National Engineering & Environmental Laboratory. Currently laboratory director, Shipp will take his new position August 1. Mr. Shipp also serves as Science & Technology Advisor to Idaho Governor Dirk Kempthorne.