Articles

Initiative aims to promote metro biotech industry

By BILL HENDRICK

Published on: 06/24/08 

A group of communities and organizations Tuesday announced the launch of Georgia's first regional branding campaign for the state's life sciences corridor, which stretches from metro Atlanta to Athens.

The initiative is aimed at providing workforce training for the state's growing biotechnology industry.

The new brand, to be called Georgia's Innovation Crescent, will attempt to cluster the region's life sciences resources and "more effectively promote the region's assets, marketing them to new businesses," said Ed Graham, project manager for the Innovation Crescent Regional Partnership.

One goal is to recognize the region that stretches from Cobb County to Gwinnett County as a "unique hub of life science talent."

The campaign incorporates the efforts of 18 communities and organizations that together formed the Innovation Crescent Regional Partnership.

It consists of regional leaders from local chambers of commerce and economic development organizations across the metro area plus Georgia Bio, the Atlanta Regional Commission and the Georgia Department of Economic Development.

"The ICRP's mission is to improve and expand the economic development marketing efforts for the life science industry within the Innovation Crescent," said Charles Craig, president of Georgia Bio, a trade group that promotes biotech growth.

"We wanted a distinct brand that would bridge the gap between local and statewide marketing efforts, supporting what we know to be the next step in strengthening our competitive edge."

The Innovation Crescent Work Ready Region will focus on establishing a stronger link between education and workforce development for life sciences companies, he said.

He added that the initiative is part of an effort to accelerate development of Georgia's bioscience workforce, with help from a $500,000 grant awarded by Gov. Sonny Perdue, Craig said.

The workforce development effort focuses on a 13-county region — the Innovation Crescent. It spreads from Cobb County east to Oglethorpe County and includes Atlanta and Fulton, DeKalb, Clayton, Gwinnett, Barrow, Jackson, Walton, Morgan, Oconee, Athens-Clarke and Madison counties.

"The major goals are to create an articulated life sciences career pathway from high school to technical colleges to universities, create training for the existing life sciences industry workforce, eliminate the skills gap... and increase high school graduation rates," he said.

"GaBio and its partners are working to help improve K-12 student achievement in science and ensure Georgia has the skilled workforce to support existing life sciences industry growth and help attract new companies to Georgia," Craig said. "These programs undertaken in the 13-county Innovation Crescent can serve as a model for counties throughout Georgia."

In addition to the Governor's Office of Workforce Development and GaBio, partners include Georgia Bioscience Technology Institute, a joint program of the Athens and Gwinnett Technical Colleges; the Biotechnology Institute of Arlington, Va.; the Georgia Research Alliance; the Georgia Department of Technical and Adult Education; the Georgia Department of Economic Development; the Atlanta Regional Commission; and the University of Georgia's Fanning Institute.

GaBio represents 330 pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device companies, universities, research institutes, government groups and other business organizations, Craig said. Georgia's biotech industry accounts for more than 15,000 jobs, a payroll close to $1 billion and boasts $7 billion in product sales.