While technical innovation historically has been a driving force behind economic development in Iowa – some of the leading industries including agriculture, advanced manufacturing and software – one noteworthy area that has seen a tremendous amount of growth is the bioscience sector. To shed some much-needed light on the challenges and advantages of enhancing bioscience-driven economic development in Iowa, the president and CEO of Iowa Innovation Corporation (IICorp.) will present as key note speaker at the 2019 Annual Development Forum on April 4, 2019.
With over 35% more jobs in the bioscience sector than the national average, Iowa has more than 24,000 people working at nearly 1,300 businesses across the state. Additionally, jobs in the bioscience sector pay, on average, 60% higher than the average for all private sector jobs and are among the fastest growing fields in higher education, attracting about $1 billion annually in outside funding for Iowa’s research institutions.
Partnering in 2017, Iowa Innovation Council and the Iowa Economic Development Authority sought to bring focus to the opportunities and challenges associated with bioscience-based economic development. They reached out to TEConomy Partners, LLC. to assess this area and provide a recommendation going forward. With the support of the governor’s office, the resulting report transformed into a “roadmap” for bioscience economic development.
By mid-2018, IICorp, the state’s public-private partnership for economic development, announced it would change its mission to serve as the bioscience development center. Leading the state’s economic development efforts, the corporation plays a critical role in increasing access to capital investment for bioscience companies, improving connectivity and collaboration opportunities between key stakeholders and ensuring continued legislative support for innovation ecosystem development programs.
Dr. Jim Register joined IICorp in 2018 after spending most of his career in agbiotech, primarily with DuPont Pioneer (now a part of Corteva Agriscience™), serving in a variety of leadership roles within Research or at the research-business interface. As key note speaker at this year’s development forum, Dr. Register will speak directly about the various ways organizations are collaborating to meet this objective.
With the bioscience industry continuing to grow and change the landscape of Iowa’s economy, this event is a don’t-miss event for anyone in the commercial real estate industry interested in staying up-to-date on the latest trends.
Dr. Jim Register joined IICorp in 2018 after spending most of his career in agbiotech, primarily with DuPont Pioneer (now a part of Corteva Agriscience™), serving in a variety of leadership roles within Research or at the research-business interface. As key note speaker at this year’s development forum, Dr. Register will speak directly about the various ways organizations are collaborating to meet this objective.
With the bioscience industry continuing to grow and change the landscape of Iowa’s economy, this event is a don’t-miss event for anyone in the commercial real estate industry interested in staying up-to-date on the latest trends.
