BioSciences meet BioBusiness at Research Corridor Action Summit
Is North Dakota ready for the emerging BioEconomy? If the 20th Century could be considered the age of physics, the 21st Century will probably be the age of biology. Economists estimate that biosciences will make up to 18 percent of our economy during the next 20 years.

North Dakota’s readiness for the bioeconomy and many other issues were the topic of discussion among over ninety participants in the Red River Valley Research Corridor Biosciences Action Summit on July 1st in Grand Forks.

The biosciences encompass a range of industry sectors relying on insights into the way living organisms function, including: agricultural feedstocks and chemicals; drugs and pharmaceuticals; medical devices and equipment; research and testing, and; academic health centers, research hospitals and research institutes.

A report issued by the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) indicates that life sciences research and development in North Dakota (2002) totaled $61.8 million dollars, representing 58% of all university R&D. The state also has a significant foundation in place beyond the university campus including growth companies in agriculture, health research and testing, as well as services, support and manufacturing for biosciences companies; for example, AGSCO, Dakota Technologies, Aldevron, and the Pracs Institute.

Keynote speaker Tom Still (pictured), President of the Wisconsin Technology Council, discussed the flourishing biosciences sector in Wisconsin, recognized by Forbes magazine as a hotbed of biocapitalism. Still’s advice to North Dakota is to focus on interdisciplinary areas of comparative advantage – our existing research base in agriculture and medicine and our regional and corporate strengths, including a dedicated and educated workforce and strong companies.

Bill Isaacson of Isaacson and Associates, Inc., former Venture Director of 3M’s Life Sciences Sector and a past President of the North Dakota State Board of Higher Education affirmed Still’s call for focus and highlighted the importance of creating an entrepreneurial culture that is augmented with investment from the public and private sectors.

A regional panel of business leaders and university researchers discussed the Corridor’s existing strengths, areas to build on and challenges that must be met. All four panelists shared the opinion that the quality of the workforce was our number one asset. Randy Brown of the Brown Corporations, one of the Corridor’s largest and most successful biosciences companies, suggested that we are probably not doing as good a jobs as we could to let people know about the strong, competitive companies in the region.

Panelist Matthew Nilles of UND’s School of Medicine, whose work on the plague could lead to new vaccinations for a number of diseases, believes that a more concerted effort needs to be undertaken to attract more life science researchers because of the multiplicative effect that this will have on innovation and the amount of research.

The need for more researchers and more collaboration was affirmed by Alan White, Dean of the College of Science and Mathematics at NDSU who also indicated that, to reach our full potential in the biosciences, we will probably need to think about investments in new facilities at our universities, to accommodate new and rapidly changing technologies.

Focus was the main theme of panelist Greg Gillispie of Dakota Technologies who believes that there is tremendous power in many people working in related areas of inquiry. Gillispie praised the Corridor’s quality of life but cautioned that technology-based businesses need access to a basic package of business and technical resources in order to succeed, a theme echoed by the university members of the panel. That is, attracting quality researchers to the Corridor requires comparable compensation packages, facilities and available technology now offered by other universities.

All of the panelists endorsed the notion that more collaboration among university researchers and businesses is a necessary ingredient in growing the biosciences sector in North Dakota.

What’s Next?

The summit concluded with participants identifying specific next steps and strategies for building the biosciences in the Corridor that included:

• Provide a clearinghouse for information about bioscience-related events and research on the Research Corridor’s website.

• Add biosciences as one of the North Dakota Department of Commerce’s target industries.

• Consider the formation of a state authority that would be responsible for policy and allocation investments of research funding to the universities.

• Increase networking opportunities and connections between university researchers and businesses in the biosciences.

• Create greater visibility within and outside the state about the research expertise and businesses already thriving here, including greater awareness of emerging career opportunities here in the state.

• Fine-tune the technology transfer of university-based intellectual property to the private sector. Make in-state companies a priority in notification of available technologies for license or purchase.

• Build on the state’s already established business base in servicing and supporting the biosciences industry through expertise in the applied sciences.

• Better utilize the workforce investment board to match the needs of biosciences industries with workforce training.

• Foster a culture of entrepreneurship and collaboration by rewarding successes.

• Develop sources of patient investment capital to protect and commercialize university-based intellectual property.

• Take a long-term perspective and be patient. Take an objective look at our existing comparative advantages and match them with viable, future opportunities.