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Pages 3-20

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From page 3...
... government officials to highlight the accomplishments, challenges, and opportunities of the Illinois innovation ecosystem. The conference highlighted the contributions of Illinois universities in generating research, creating new businesses, and attracting talent to the state.
From page 4...
... 2 That is when entrepreneurs can identify which ones are likely to be winners and make the investments that lead to success." What are the essential elements of a successful innovation ecosystem? According to Dennis Roberson of the Illinois Institute of Technology, key ingredients include a skilled workforce, modern infrastructure, responsive community services, adequate venture financing, and an effective and enabling government.
From page 5...
... Mirkin, with "willing participants and great talent, within innovation hubs consisting of great universities and government laboratories, and a population of students, post doctoral researchers, faculty members, and business leaders." B BUILDING THE ILLINOIS INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM Are these elements of a successful innovation ecosystem in place in Illinois?
From page 6...
... David Miller noted that iBIO, founded in 2003, supports multiple sectors of the Illinois biotechnology industry, including strong companies and start-ups in medical, agricultural, and bio-industrial areas. Norbert Riedel of Baxter, a strong supporter of iBIO, noted that his organization has expanded its reach by providing more than 500 teachers with professional development, problem-based learning, and the stronger ability to teach science -- a pressing regional and national need.
From page 7...
... He noted in particular "a community spirit that is very important in building this infrastructure," reflected in the new tech parks in adjacent Skokie, the Illinois Institute of Technology, the Illinois Medical District, and the University of Illinois Technology Park, which "for the most part, are filling up to capacity. "This clearly shows that we are building jobs, companies, and a technology-based industry.
From page 8...
... "We are moving into a more complex and rewarding world," he said, "with diverse innovation ecosystems, networks of mentors connected to those who are new, and the ability to envision in our state a community where people together can make innovation happen." C CREATING INNOVATION UNIVERSITIES Universities with active missions to educate, conduct research, and commercialize new technologies are an important part of a regional innovation ecosystem.
From page 9...
... As part of their mission, these universities emphasize technology as well as science. "If President Lincoln didn't make it clear in 1862 when he signed the Morrill Act," she said, "our state legislature made it very clear in 2000 when they established economic development as the fourth mission of the University of Illinois." In approaching the economic development portion of the mission "comprehensively," she said, the university tries to "enable research, transfer it into people's daily lives, incubate young companies that grow out of research, and invest in those companies." For example:  I-STEM brings in public funding for pre-school education, middle and high school education, and experiences for college and graduate
From page 10...
...  The university sponsors Business Plan Competitions "that have been successful in rewarding students and in providing state funding for their companies." The program introduces students with business skills to students with engineering and science skills and helps them combine skill sets and potentially find a commercial application.  Tech Ventures encourages students from the business school to partner with the tech transfer office, create a business plan, and try to identify a commercial application for new technologies.
From page 11...
... SUPPORTING INNOVATION AT THE STATE HOUSE In his keynote remarks, Governor Quinn noted that Illinois offers strong support for innovation. He described the State's Pathways Initiative, which seeks to encourage young people to embrace science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
From page 12...
... Belying the widespread image of federal agencies as siloed, inflexible bureaucracies, senior representatives from the Economic Development Administration, the National Cancer Institute, the National Science Foundation, the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Energy, and the Office of Naval Research described novel and cross-disciplinary approaches to the generation and translation of new knowledge. These approaches represent new opportunities for the state's universities and research centers to participate in a wide range of federal research and to develop the regional innovation ecosystem.
From page 13...
... OVERVIEW 13 was a little surprising. First, everybody wanted standards and protocols.
From page 14...
... The infrastructure, which is required to do the initial basic research, requires funding at a level that is seldom available locally. This is where government participation is essential in the form of federal and sometimes state support for the physical innovation environment, from broadband to real estate to highways.
From page 15...
... ENCOURAGING INNOVATIVE START-UPS Although innovation clusters provide helpful seed beds and incubators for new firms, they still face the "valley of death," the period of transition when a developing technology is deemed promising, but too new to validate its commercial potential and thereby attract the capital necessary for its continued
From page 16...
... Norbert Riedel of Baxter described the role of corporate seed funds. Baxter, he said, has partnerships with Northwestern and the University of Illinois to create a seed fund with about $200 million for biotechnology innovations; Abbott Laboratories has a similar fund.
From page 17...
... Roberson of the Illinois Institute of Technology felt strongly that every sector in the innovation ecosystem has training responsibilities. These include the continuing education programs of universities, the partnerships between cities and community colleges, "and the obligation of companies to support the continuing education of their own employees." J
From page 18...
... "Economic development today," he said, "is about the global economy. It requires aligning human capital with job needs; developing enabling infrastructure; increasing spatial efficiency; creating effective public and civic culture and institutions; and enhancing regional clusters.
From page 19...
... In his concluding remarks, Andy Ross, Governor Quinn's Chief Operating Officer, asserted that he was in full agreement on the need for the state to invest in the infrastructure -- both physical and human -- for innovation. However, citing the state's $83 billion in unfunded pension liabilities, he noted that key programs, including the Pathways Initiative, were "on hold" until the state took strong measures to resolve its pension crisis.
From page 20...
... Intermediating institutions, like iBio, show how leveraging existing assets can create the new high growth companies that can accelerate the growth of the state's innovation economy. Finally, this conference report also identifies a number of "best practices." For example, Northwestern's Julio Ottino and of the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition's Mark Harris underscored the importance of entrepreneurship courses at universities and the need for inter-disciplinary approaches to teaching engineering, science, and business.


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