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The
hoary
arguments of capital vs. labor that dominated the
economic growth debate of the 20th century can be
retired now. It's a new millenium, even in the
Commonwealth. The state AFL-CIO dropped
right-to-work on its candidate questionnaire
sometime ago. Though cold and timid skeptics may
try to dismiss the numbers or the methodologies
involved, technological progress has emerged as
the single most important driver of economic
growth. That's the core agenda for any Virginia
governor and General Assembly if the Commonwealth
is to rise above what some describe as a gathering
storm of international competition.
The
numbers come from the Alliance for Science &
Technology Research in America (ASTRA), which
suggests 53 percent of economic growth in the
United States can be attributed to its
technological progress. ASTRA found that advances
in labor contribute 25 percent and capital just 21
percent. ASTRA Chairman Dr. Mary Good, who is also
the Dean of the School of Information Science at
the University of Arkansas and a presidential
science advisor, talked about those numbers and
their implications for the future earlier this
month at the Accelerating Innovation Foundation
Conference in Washington, D.C.
"The
future demands talent, investment and the right
infrastructure," Dr. Good told attendees,
"including physical environments and great
conditions for business. But more than anything
else, the future will reward technological
progress."
ASTRA
bills itself as a unique collaboration of
individuals drawn from industry, professional and
trade associations, universities and research
centers to increase federal funding for the
physical and mathematical sciences and
engineering. It also backs initiatives in skilled
workforce preparation, science education and basic
industry research.
For
its part, the Accelerating Innovation Foundation
is an initiative of Luna Innovations Incorporated
of Blacksburg. Luna is the business development
brainchild of Dr. Kent Murphy, a former Virginia
Tech engineering professor, to turn good ideas
into successful commercial products and ventures.
The foundation's inaugural conference in October
was the beginning of efforts to widen the
influence of Dr. Murphy's own bias to shake off
"the false comfort of old assumptions"
and learn to "prefer the possibilities of the
future to the history of the past."
Much
of the discussions were devoted to trends and
barriers that show how difficult that is for
Virginia and the United States right now. Dr.
Charles Wessner of the National Academies reminded
conference attendees that American leadership in
science and innovation was not divinely ordained.
The United States, he said, took advantage of
circumstances in the second half of the 20th
century to earn it and wrest leadership from
Europe.
But
industry in the U.S. now spends more on tort
litigation that on R&D. Only 41 percent of
U.S. eighth-graders have a math teacher who
majored or is certified in math. China and India
will graduate almost a million engineers this
year: America will graduate 70,000.
To
continue to earn world leadership in innovation,
United States Senator George Allen suggested,
would take new investments in diverse talent, in
facilities and in leadership, itself. "We
have to include more funding and training for
teachers so that students, particularly female,
African-American and Latino students, find science
and math more interesting and engaging."
Growing
America's talent pool by providing scholarships
and other incentives for new math and science
teacher training is recommendation number one of a
just completed study by the National Academies
entitled "Rising Above the Gathering
Storm." Increasing the numbers of
well-trained people also increases the stream of
scientific and technical innovations they produce.
Increasing federal dollars for basic research is
another recommendation. Streamlining visa and
security requirements for international science,
technology, engineering and math students is a
third. Tax incentives to encourage research and
innovation here is a fourth.
That
there are dramatic results from economic
development strategies that center on
technological progress and a skilled workforce is
clear. The Northern Virginia economy, for example,
is a world leader in both and, as a result, drives
job creation and income gains for Virginia.
Technology leadership plus smart people attract
capital. But even Northern Virginia businesses
have to adjust to the twin challenges of
globalization and innovation in a myriad of ways.
Many purposely have built multi-national,
multi-lingual work forces here. Others have
created new jobs in markets where the science,
technology and engineering talent pools are
growing the fastest -- China, India, Taiwan and
Australia.
But
technology companies also are investing in the
capabilities and promise of other parts of
Virginia. Northern Virginia-based CGI-AMS
announced late in October that it would invest $6
million in a software development and systems
integration center in Russell County that could
create 300 new jobs over the next 30 months.
Parent CGI is among the largest independent IT and
business process firms in North America with a $3
billion annualized run-rate.
CGI
chose Southwest Virginia when it could have
expanded anywhere in the U.S., Canada, Europe or
Asia." The Russell County facility will be a
key location to support business initiatives with
federal, state and local government organizations,
as well as commercial sector clients," said
CGI-AMS President Donna Morea. "Our new
facility represents our concrete commitment to
developing a U.S. center of excellence with a
focus on software engineering as part of our
global delivery model."
Earlier
this year EIT, Inc., a contract provider of
electronic design and manufacturing services based
near Dulles Airport, announced a $12 million
investment to create up to 120 jobs in Danville.
EIT was founded in 1977 by Joe T. May, an engineer
who holds 18 patents. Chairman & CEO May also
is a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and
Chairman of both the House Science &
Technology Committee and the Joint Commission on
Technology & Science.
Why
Southside as the best place to manufacture circuit
boards with lead-free solder that meet stringent
new international environmental requirements?
Danville has a regional commitment to building a
technology economy, noted Del. May, and a location
central to EIT markets. There is a pro-business
local government, the new Institute for Advanced
Learning and Research, a Regional Center for
Applied Technology and Training and a new
broadband network. In May's words, Danville has
broken "the language barrier of
technology."
Part
of the language of innovation and economic growth
are the numbers 53-25-21. And if there is a
growing "innovation gap" that needs
attention, it shouldn't be a gap in Virginia's
understanding of how fast and how thoroughly we
need to respond to the challenges of the global,
technologically driven future.
--
October 31, 2005
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