Overview
Businesses – and the people who start them and work for them – create jobs and compete in the global marketplace. Accordingly, a state’s success depends largely on the smart people and new discoveries keeping its industries globally competitive. Any state serious about competitiveness has to be serious about policies and investments that foster smart people, smart ideas and the right environment to promote innovation. This means investing in research and development (R&D) funds, supporting the educational institutes that produce both cutting-edge research and a skilled workforce, and investing in commercializing the new discoveries and technologies that lead to new products and new companies.
Focus of Center Activities
To help states thrive in a global economy that rewards talent and innovation, the NGA Center’s Economic, Human Services & Workforce Division’s Economic Development concentration focuses on helping states identify key strategies and promising policies. The current focus includes the state’s role in enhancing:
- Research & Development and its Commercialization;
- Entrepreneurship and New Business Development;
- The Green Economy;
- Arts and the Economy; and,
- Higher Education’s Contribution to Economic Growth.
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