My Gift To The Governor; A Kiplinger's Subscription

Two seemingly-unrelated news item struck me this morning as being inextricably linked and of significant consequence to Orlando's innovation economy.  First, the Orlando Sentinel reported that Governor Charlie Crist is considering using his veto power to nix $20 million in funding for the University of Florida's life sciences academic and research building that would be located next to the Sanford-Burnham Institute for Medical Research in Lake Nona's Medical City (http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/education/os-uf-research-center-05-27-2010-20100526,0,1700103.story).  Second, Kiplinger's released its list of the "10 Best Cities For The Next Decade" - a list that is dominated by cities (the top five are Austin, Seattle, DC, Boulder, and Salt Lake City)  harboring smart people clustered around educational and scientific assets (http://www.kiplinger.com/magazine/archives/10-best-cities-2010-for-the-next-decade.html).  So, on the one hand, Florida's Governor is suspect of the economic value created by establishing an academic and research outpost in Orlando from one of the country's largest research universities.  On the other hand, one of the nation's top business magazines tells us that we should be moving to cities with large concentrations of smart people networked with academic, scientific, and entrepreneurial support systems.  What gives?

I surmise that Governor Crist is reacting to some of the sketchier legislative appropriations to universities that have come to light in the past several years; combined with a tight state budget, his caution is certainly warranted.  However, there is now a growing body of research telling us that supporting our universities is one of the most effective ways to boost our economy and grow our jobs base over the coming years; for those of you with an interest in this research, you might find a recent SUNY-Albany report entitled "A New Paradigm for Economic Development:  How Higher Education Institutions are Working to Revitalize Their Regional and State Economies" particularly relevant (http://www.rockinst.org/pdf/education/2010-03-18-A_New_Paradigm.pdf).

When viewed in this light, investing in our university system, especially in educational and scientific assets located in metropolitan areas where smart people are already clustering (such as Orlando's University Corridor), makes eminent sense for any politician looking to create a prosperous economic future for his or her constituents.  Therefore, please consider letting Governor Crist know that adding UF to the potent academic, scientific, and entrepreneurial assets already here in Orlando will only serve to further advance our economic prosperity (and perhaps put Orlando on Kiplinger's top ten list next year).  Of course, you can also let him know that our other choice might be to move to Austin...