In honor of Earth Day, SSTI has prepared a special edition of the SSTI Weekly Digest focused almost exclusively on green issues, ranging from a round-up of recent developments to encourage the creation and growth of alternative energy companies to a profile of Toledo's solar success story. Enjoy the news, and pass this issue along to others you think would be interested-but do it electronically, please.
Though green jobs have become the focus of many TBED initiatives at the federal, state and local levels, it remains difficult to estimate the size of the green workforce. Green jobs are a relatively new focus for economic development, and there is no standard definition of the green economy and green occupations. Several recent reports have taken on the task of defining green jobs, including the industry sectors that should be folded into that definition.
Green stimulus investments have the potential to yield a greater number of jobs and greater long-term prosperity than traditional stimulus investments, according to a new study presented at the recent G20 summit. The report examines the stimulus packages passed in the G20 countries, particularly their relative emphasis on spending related to sustainability.
In the midst of a national economic recession contributing to a record number of job losses in traditional industries, forward thinking states are exploring ideas and committing funds to help grow and diversify their economies and strengthen their renewable energy portfolios.
On April 14, the National Science Board NSB released for public comment a draft report, Building a Sustainable Energy Future, which calls on the nation to lead the fundamental transformation of the current energy economy from one that is dependent on fossil fuel to one that thrives on sustainable and clean energy. The draft NSB report outlines key findings and makes recommendations for the federal government, with specific priority guidance for the National Science Foundation.
Within the last two weeks, both Kentucky and Michigan announced major developments in their ongoing efforts to build a statewide advanced battery industry. With these initiatives, the states hope to better position themselves for upcoming rounds of advanced battery development grants from the federal government and other future sources of investment.
Last week, the Board of Trustees at the University of Toledo approved the creation of a School of Solar and Advanced Renewable Energy. The School will integrate faculty from multiple science, engineering, and business disciplines to offer its own degrees and perform collaborative research, often with industrial partners associated with the region's established solar energy and photovoltaics cluster.
One of the biggest challenges for green technologies and products is breaking into the market. Achieving the critical mass that allows production volume to drive down prices is difficult, particularly when the commodity being sold is, at least initially, more expensive to make because more of the actual cost of production is captured in the green company's business model.
Seize the opportunity for recognition of outstanding achievement in tech-based economic development.
SSTI is pleased to invite applications for the 2009 awards cycle, a program recognizing exceptional achievements in approaches to improving state and regional economies through science, technology and innovation.
The Ohio Department of Development invites bids for two Requests for Proposals (RFP) to provide evaluation services and other forms of technical assistance for the state's fiscal years 2010 and 2011. Proposals for either opportunity are due by May 29. Specifically, Development is seeking contractors for the following:
Complete descriptions of these opportunities and others are available at: http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm.
As one of several states working to recruit and retain companies that create green jobs, Minnesota lawmakers passed a measure to create a multiagency authority to promote, market and coordinate state agency collaboration on green enterprise and green economy projects. At the same time, legislators rejected Gov.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) last week published the final version of its guidelines regarding human stem cell research, in part determining which human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) are eligible for research with NIH funding. The final guidelines contain adjustments from the draft version of the guidelines released on April 23 for public comment, from which the NIH received approximately 49,000 statements from advocacy groups, scientists, medical organizations, religious groups, members of Congress, and private citizens.
The lazy days of summer may be the most challenging time to keep students and teachers motivated and engaged in academics. Fortunately, several programs across the country have risen to the challenge. And, with the Obama Administration's pledge to make math and science education a national priority, now may be an opportune time for collaboration among federal and state agencies, private foundations, and industry to reverse the U.S. decline in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.
Three metropolitan areas dominate the U.S. venture capital landscape: San Francisco, Boston and New York. These cities are home to about half of all U.S. venture firms and about half of all U.S. venture-backed companies. Though venture firms have sprung up around the country over the past 25 years, the three cities have maintained, and even expanded, their share of national firms and investment.
SSTI has prepared a table displaying the amount companies spent on R&D in each state from 2003 to 2007, the state's rank in 2007, the percent change over this five-year period, and the rank of that percent change. For the U.S. as a whole, industry-funded R&D was $204 billion in 2003 and rose to $269.3 billion in 2007 - a five-year jump of 32 percent. Note, the amounts in the chart are not indexed to a single year, but reflect values from when the data was released.
President Obama nominated Francis Collins, a physician and scientist who helped guide the Human Genome Project to completion, as the next director of the National Institutes of Health.
Congress has approved a two-month extension for the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program, which was set to expire on Friday, July 31. S. 1513 extends the program in its current form until Sept 30, 2009, which coincides with the end of the federal fiscal year.
The U.S. venture capital industry showed signs of growth during the second quarter of 2009, according to the most recent update from the National Venture Capital Association and PricewaterhouseCoopers Moneytree Report. While the total number of deals remained flat, total dollars invested increased by 15 percent over the first quarter of the year. Much of the growth is the result of increased investment in seed and early-stage companies, which grew 67 percent over the previous quarter in an encouraging sign for entrepreneurs.
The New York State legislature passed an act enabling New York City to move forward with a $3 million biotech tax credit that is expected to encourage biotechnology firms to bring their jobs, innovation, and emerging technologies to the city. The bill (S.4845-B/A.8131) is expected to be signed into law by Gov. David Paterson.
Funding for higher education initiatives fell victim to Ohio's budget woes as legislators worked to fill a projected $3.2 billion deficit. The enacted budget signed into law earlier this month by Gov. Ted Strickland cuts spending by $2.5 billion and leverages $5 billion in federal stimulus funds, according to the governor's office.
The legislature approved a budget agreement for the 2009-11 biennium last month, preserving partial funding for Oregon innovation efforts and passing legislation aimed at green job creation. A major component of Gov. Ted Kulongoski's climate change agenda did not survive the legislative session, however.
Gov. Pat Quinn recently signed into law a six-year, $31 billion Jobs Now plan and smaller capital bill supporting science and technology research and commercialization and broadband deployment. The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) will administer several of the grants.
Decreases in the number of young adults in the state are more a result of fewer children being born 25 to 35 years ago, and not because of a substantial brain drain or outmigration of talent from New Hampshire, according to a task force convened by New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch. However, attracting and retaining younger workers to the state is imperative because of the large share of baby-boomers in the workforce that will be retiring in the next decade.
Rebecca Bagley, who left her position as deputy secretary for the Technology Investment Office within the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, was appointed president-elect of NorTech. Bagley will succeed Dorothy Baunach, the founding staff director of NorTech, as president and chief executive officer. Baunach will become president emeritus, serving as an adviser until December 2010.