By Ranada Robinson, Senior Research Associate.
The White House recently released A Strategy for American Innovation: Securing Our Economic Growth and Prosperity, which updates the 2009 Innovation Strategy while addressing some issues that President Obama discussed in his 2011 State of the Union Address.
Interesting components of the strategy include:
- An increased focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics education (STEM) through early learning programs, Race to the Top-related initiatives, and through organizations such as Change the Equation. Because innovation is such a vital part of our future, STEM education, research, and training has to be a higher priority.
- Enhanced incentives for tech transfer opportunities through programs such as Startup America, and tax credits for research and experimentation. The Startup America program will further support entrepreneurship, leveraging university research, providing much-needed start up and early-stage capital, and expanding opportunities for new business owners to find experienced mentors.
- Amplified government support of technological advances, including those related to clean energy, biotechnology, space applications, health care technology, education technology, and other advanced manufacturing areas. As Make It in America by Andrew Liveris says best, the United States has to see and appreciate the impact that the evolution of manufacturing has on our economy and steer what is manufactured (and keeping in mind what is not manufactured here) in the right direction.
These components fused together—education, entrepreneurship, and a heightened priority on innovation in important areas—make for a solid strategy that can push America to the forefront of this New Economy. Ensuring that our kids have the skills to innovate in the future, making entrepreneurship accessible and success more likely, and creating public-private partnerships that focus on national technological priorities are all objectives that Market Street has endorsed in the past and will continue encourage in our client communities.
