Duke University officials, congressional staff members and entrepreneurs
gathered in Washington, DC, Wednesday to participate in a congressional
briefing, "The Research Triangle of North Carolina: The Innovation
Ecosystem and Economic Development."
Wednesday's event, held in the Capitol Visitors Center,
included a panel discussion on the
relationship between universities, the federal government and the private
sector and how to promote economic development by developing an environment
supportive of innovation.
In her opening
remarks, U.S. Senator Kay Hagan (D-NC) emphasized the economic successes of North
Carolina's Research Triangle Park (RTP). "[North Carolina's]
accomplishments are due to what I call the three-legged stool of economic growth:
education, infrastructure and research and development. One need only to look
at RTP to see how commitments to these three priorities have all converged to
create a world renowned innovation center."
Kimberly Jenkins, who advises the
Duke leadership on entrepreneurship, spoke about the partnership between The
Blackstone Charitable Foundation and a consortium of major Triangle
universities that is working to help North Carolina's Research Triangle become
home to America's next high-growth companies.
Highlighting the role university
research plays in driving this growth, Jenkins said, "Universities tend to
be the engines of innovation and federal dollars are driving that innovation."
"With federal funding focused
on translational research -- focused on getting it out of the lab to the
marketplace -- we are able to provide some of the solutions that really
transform not only our economy but address the most pressing needs of our
society," Jenkins said.
Charles Hayes, president and CEO of Research
Triangle Regional Partnership (RTRP), provided
a regional view of the public-private partnership that underpins the Research Triangle's
knowledge-based economy.
"The three-way partnership is what's made
RTP what it is today. It's a
strong partnership between government, business, and academia -- that's in our
DNA. It's what's going to make us competitive globally. Basic research leads to
applied research, leads to jobs. It's just that simple," Hayes said.
Aaron "Ronnie" Chatterji, an associate professor of strategy at the
Fuqua School of Business, moderated the panel. In August 2011, Chatterji completed his service as a senior
economist at the White House Council of Economic Advisors (CEA), where he
focused on entrepreneurship, small business and innovation policy.
The briefing was timely, said Melissa Vetterkind, director
of Duke's Office of Federal Relations. "It's hard to pick up a newspaper
or turn on the TV without hearing someone talking about the need to create more
jobs. I think the panelists gave us great examples of how strong relationships
between the public and private sector can lead to economic growth, something on
many policymakers' minds."
"The Innovation
Ecosystem and Economic Development" was the inaugural event of Duke
University Congressional Briefing Program. This program seeks to place knowledge in the service of
society by educating congressional staff on selected policy topics by national
experts from Duke and across the nation.