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Maine Policy Review

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Maine’S Innovation Prospects: What The Research Can Tell Us, Linda Silka Jan 2014

Maine’S Innovation Prospects: What The Research Can Tell Us, Linda Silka

Maine Policy Review

The innovation literature suggests Maine faces a number of challenges. This overview article discusses this literature, noting how recent findings about boundary spanning point to the importance of both individual skills and group collaboration in innovation. It highlights the implications for policies that could jumpstart innovation, noting the importance of looking to history, looking across topics, looking across disciplines, looking to other states, and looking to other countries to avoid becoming too short-sighted and parochial in approaches.


An Emerging Model Of Innovation For Maine, Renee Kelly Jan 2014

An Emerging Model Of Innovation For Maine, Renee Kelly

Maine Policy Review

The state of Maine began making significant investments in research and development in the late 1990s, aligning those investments with industry sectors that drew upon the state’s traditional strengths as well as emerging industries such as biotechnology. This strategy was largely built upon the cluster theory of economic development, which can be challenging to implement in rural areas, in part because of their less dense social networks. This paper suggests that developing more efficient social networks will build stronger clusters and make rural areas more successful in innovation, and presents the Blackstone Accelerates Growth initiative as an emerging model for …


Transforming Maine’S Economy: Innovation And Entrepreneurship Policy, Catherine Searle Renault Jan 2014

Transforming Maine’S Economy: Innovation And Entrepreneurship Policy, Catherine Searle Renault

Maine Policy Review

Innovation and entrepreneurship are major drivers of economic growth. Support for them is a primary role of state government in order to increase the well being of its citizens through the provision of well-paying jobs that cannot be easily exported. Today, the state’s role is described as “enhancing the innovation ecosystem,” with the goal of increased productivity, innovation and competitiveness. Policies to build the ecosystem include: (1) building and supporting a state’s research and development capacity; (2) encouraging a state’s entrepreneurial community, (3) increasing the productivity of a state’s economy though the commercialization of new products, services, processes, business models …


Finding Untapped Opportunities In Forests, Linda Silka Jan 2014

Finding Untapped Opportunities In Forests, Linda Silka

Maine Policy Review

Opportunities for innovation in forests in Maine and elsewhere are discussed, including forest bioproducts research at the University of Maine.


Farming’S Future Depends On Continued Innovation, John Piotti Jan 2014

Farming’S Future Depends On Continued Innovation, John Piotti

Maine Policy Review

Farming is on the upswing in Maine, with many innovative practices and institutions described in this article.


Do We Have The Workforce Skills For Maine’S Innovation Economy?, John Dorrer Jan 2014

Do We Have The Workforce Skills For Maine’S Innovation Economy?, John Dorrer

Maine Policy Review

A convergence of economic and demographic forces is shaping a set of formidable challenges for Maine. This article describes how a workforce with superior skills is the key to economic growth and innovation. Over the last five decades, skill requirements have changed dramatically for most workers with the shift from goods-producing to service industries. While much has been done in reforming K-12, post secondary, and adult education systems to accommodate the changing Maine economy, it is not enough More innovation and adaptation will be required from policymakers, institutional leaders, employers and Maine people themselves.


Technology Policy: A Fixture On The National Agenda, Robert M. Kidd, Richard C. Hill, James S. Ward Iv Jan 1995

Technology Policy: A Fixture On The National Agenda, Robert M. Kidd, Richard C. Hill, James S. Ward Iv

Maine Policy Review

In his commentary, Robert Kidd, president of the Maine Science and Technology Foundation, echoes the call by Rycroft, Kash and Adams in their article [this issue] for a new technology policy focused on industrial competitiveness. He defines a partnership role for states in the design and implementation of national technology priorities. James Ward, IV and Richard Hill, raise several questions in their commentary. Can we rely on the federal government to successfully direct this policy area? How would a new technology policy impact the roles and responsibilities of the private and public sectors? What can we learn from partnerships between …