Two RIEDC-backed initiatives awarded grants to boost state’s knowledge economy
Related Media Coverage and Links
April 1, 2009 | Print this page | Share This |
Funding supports efforts to establish a Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, innovation network for new businesses
The Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation today announced that two of its programs have received Knowledge Economy Grants Awards from the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce and the City of Providence.
The two initiatives are designed to nurture entrepreneurship and foster innovative businesses. The awards support projects that will grow the 21st century knowledge economy in Providence and statewide.
The Rhode Island Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, a public/private partnership led by the RIEDC and Brown University to create a new center to train Rhode Island’s entrepreneurs and assist in the development of innovative new ventures, was awarded $10,500 by the Chamber as well as $5,000 by the City of Providence, Providence Economic Development Partnership.
Establishment of the center is a key action item in the RIEDC’s 2009 Economic Growth Plan. The center will launch April 28 on the second floor at One Davol Square in Providence’s Jewelry District. The grant will support a collaborative strategy and planning session by key leaders to inform and refine the center’s offerings so it best meets the needs of the state’s knowledge economy.
“We’re grateful for this generous support of the new Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship,” said J. Michael Saul, interim executive director of RIEDC. “We see the center as playing a critical role in fueling the state’s innovation economy by helping entrepreneurs turn ideas into reality and creating new jobs.”
The Rhode Island Innovation Network and Business Development Program, a proposal submitted by the Rhode Island Manufacturing Extension Services (RIMES), the Rhode Island Science and Technology Advisory Council (STAC) and the Rhode Island Small Business Development Center (RI SBDC) at Johnson & Wales University, supports the creation of a sustainable matchmaking approach from idea to commercialization. The new program was awarded $15,000 by the City of Providence, Providence Economic Development Partnership.
The pilot program will feature a kickoff event with a nationally-recognized innovation leader and more than 100 inventors and entrepreneurs, as well as a matchmaker event and access to the Rhode Island Research Directory through the STAC. It will also develop a feeder program for the RI SBDC’s “Innovation Monday” program and create a sustainable network to provide a forum to link inventors, entrepreneurs, research labs, advanced manufacturers and potential funding providers.
“With this award, we can connect the innovation network to new and existing businesses and help create partnerships that will enable new and/or modified products to find their way into the marketplace,” said Leslie Taito, CEO of RIMES.
The Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce’s Knowledge Economy Initiative started in 2007 and is overseen by the Innovation Providence Implementation Council. Other awards announced today support efforts related to sustainable seafood, expansion of the green-collar workforce and a biofuels summit at the University of Rhode Island.
The awards were announced this morning at the Providence Fab Lab at AS220, a public technology workshop awarded a $20,000 Knowledge Economy Grant Award.
