ASU President Michael Crow is one of the featured speakers at a conference this Wednesday at the National Academies of Science "on the role of innovation clusters in spurring economic development, creating new jobs, and building a competitive American economy for the 21st century." [right, a recent proposal for "Creating a National Innovation Foundation." Credit, Science Progress]
Science Progress describes innovation clusters this way:
Arizona had been highlighted in national studies as one of the leading states in technology innovation but state budget cuts have curtailed efforts.A regional center of innovation is a geographic area that supports technology-based economic development through a dynamic mix of researchers, entrepreneurs, investors, and infrastructure, with support from universities and local, state, and federal government policies.
In the United States, the two best examples are Silicon Valley, the hotbed of computer technology in northern California, and the metropolitan Boston area connected by Route 128, which is a nexus of biotechnology research and development.