The Color of Innovation

The Color of Innovation is East Crimson

Although an ancient state, Zhou’s sole mission is innovation.

—— Anecdotes of King Wen, Major Odes. The Book of Poetry

      On October 27, 2011, an organized gathering on one of Boston’s red line subways attracted the attention of many passers-by. At one o’ clock sharp in the afternoon, a train with the sign of “Innovation Express” departed slowly from JFK/UMASS station. In the last carriage of the train, over fifty special passengers stood together, shaking hands, greeting each other and quickly getting into conversations. The organizers, as soon as they were finished with announcing the itinerary as well as warnings, quickly passed the bullhorn on to prearranged keynote speakers of the day. It was Boston World Partnerships, shortened as BWP, who initiated, sponsored and organized this innovation trip via Internet and cell phone. Those invited were all entrepreneurs and business networkers actively involved in innovation activities around Boston and Cambridge. “Innovation Express” not only allowed passengers to freely join at all stations but had set up brief addresses by representatives from start-up facilities and organizations in between stations. All participants alighted at the Davis Square Station in Somerville and took the return train back to Kendall Square, where they continued the buzzing discussions in Cambridge Innovation Center.

The event was a huge success. For one thing, the participants exchanged plenty of information regarding the industries; for another, they made first moves on establishing lasting ties with peers. Besides, the city was able to promote both Innovation District and New Urban Mechanics, and the passengers who joined during the ride learned about many companies and organizations along the red line. All had an extraordinary first-hand experience of Boston area’s rich innovation atmosphere and growth vitality. By the word of month of the participants and witnesses, as well as extensive media coverage, “Innovation Express” brought into public view such enterprises, institutions and projects, well known or unfamiliar, as UMass Boston Venture Development Center, Work Bar, Cambridge Innovation Center, Harvard Innovation Lab, Boston World Partnerships and Future Boston Alliance.

The ingenuous planning of “Innovation Express” boosted the fame of Red Line, yet it was President Drew Faust of Harvard University who first made connections between Red Line and innovation. Anyone who knows well about the trajectory of Boston’s innovation economy would remember the moment on May 1, 2009 when Faust delivered a memorable speech at UMass Boston campus, entitled “Innovation, Collaboration and Renewal- Lessons along the Red Line.” Through citing a considerable amount of both data and facts, Faust struck home the significant role universities and research institutes in the Greater Boston Area have played in promoting regional economic development. Echoing the theme of Obama’s address at the Annual Meeting of the National Academy of Science one week earlier, Faust made a vocal appeal in continued increase in  R&D investment, at a difficult time as such, to assist America’s economic revival and sustainable growth. She employed her personal experience on the Red Line to articulate a new and weighty discovery.

“The Red Line, which I rode here this morning, is far more than a subway line, far more than a transportation artery – it is a highly useful reminder of where we have been, and where we are, and where we can go … if we commit to working together to get there.”

“The Red Line is not just transportation. It connects programs; it connects institutions; and, most important…it connects people…people who are the most efficient translators of ideas, innovation and knowledge; it provides us with a vision of what our community was…what it is…and what it can become. But this unassuming transit line is also a ruby necklace, whose jewels include – to name a few – Tufts, Harvard, Novartis, Amgen, MIT, the Broad Institute, the Whitehead Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, the Federal Reserve Bank, and, of course, the University of Massachusetts Boston and the Venture Development Center whose creation we celebrate today.”

Foster then introduced in specific some of the innovation events and programs that have grown and developed on the many innovation sites. The close linkage between innovation and Red Line was then officially established.

On April 13, WBUR, the radio network based in Boston, began one of its reports on Red Line with the following words: “Remember how Route 128 used to be known as America’s Technology Highway? Well perhaps now there’s America’s Technology Subway.” Boston’s innovation hub, especially tailored for novice, Greenhorn Connect, made a direct proposition that we should rename the “Red Line” the “Innovation Line.”

In America, meetings, events and speeches too are obligations for leaders and managers. Yet events like “Innovation Express” and such talks as those on “Innovation Red Line”, I figure, would seem more of a delight than boredom for most people.

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      March 23, 2012 marked the centennial anniversary of the Red Line subway. The red Line, last to be built among the four subway lines in Boston area (America’s first subway line was opened in 1897, which became part of the present day Green Line), soon grew to be the region’s most modernized and fastest subway line with fewest accidents. From using the world’s longest and widest carriage to being among the first to install soft seats, polka dot curtains and ventilation fan, and to recently putting in place LED displays and other advanced electronic equipment, the red line has been the most convenient and comfortable local public transport.

It took over fifteen years, from 1894 to 1909, for the Red Line project to start after it had been conceived. Initially, the discussion was about route and funding, then Boston Elevated Railway was asked to build the bridge over Charles River first, and finally, the number of stops along the line was debated. All different types of stakeholders, including residents living in adjacent areas to the line, businesses, government agencies, as well as construction and operating companies, were allowed to fully express their opinions and aspirations, followed by endless hearings, verifications and debates until compromises were ultimately reached. Once all the procedures were finished, building the road became easy. Only three years passed before all the construction work was completed. At five twenty-four on the afternoon of March 23, 1912, the train with superiorly designed extra-long and extra-large carriages set off from Harvard Square toward Park Street. Nearly 300 passengers took the first train, mostly Harvard students. They danced and cheered as if they were heralding a brand new era! A total of eighteen years were divided between three years of actual construction and fifteen years of investigation and negotiation. What may appear incredible to us is exactly the American way of doing business. In view of its normal operation 100 years later and its assumption of new tasks to promote innovation economy, all the prudence and delay early on seemed worthwhile.

The opening of subway line from Harvard Square to Park Street was only a prologue to the construction project of a main artery to connect the south and north of Boston. Although the large-scale construction concentrated in a two-decade period between 1912 and 1929, it was not until after 1985 that the expansion was completed and the whole line began its stable operation. In the 1970s, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (referred to as MBTA) conceived a grand plan of connecting Route 128 with the Red Line, which met the fierce opposition of some residents from Arlington, the town it would run through. After four years’ demonstration and negotiation, the plan was abandoned in a referendum, but now serves as a textbook case for Professor Alan Altshuler’s course in Kennedy School of Government. However, the entire blueprint for the Red Line is still waiting to be materialized. In fact, a new debate has been on for many years over the connection of the Red and Blue lines. It is a fairly simple proposal: to build a Red-Blue Connector to link Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) on the Red Line with the Government Center on the Blue Line. The progenitor and promoter of this proposal is a reputable NGO in the New English region—Conservation Law Foundation. Founded in 1966, with legal professionals as its core members,CLF advocates environmental protection and public transport services to encourage the region’s “smart growth.”

As for the negative opinions of Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization, CLF’s lawyer Rafael Mares responded with firm rebuttals point by point. He believed any opposition to or delay of the project would be short-sighted, because “it’s a critical project with economic, environmental, and social-justice components.” A series of hearings have been scheduled to decide the fate of this project, and the “Innovation Red Line” is likely to welcome another opportunity for its performance enhancement.

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     Boston is a city in fervent love with red. Red can be seen everywhere, from Harvard Crimson, the Red Line, the Boston Red Sox, red lobsters, to the Freedom Trail, a famous tourist route painted in red and marked with historic sites of America. Loitering on Harvard campus or wandering in Cambridge and Boston downtown, I feel familiar and intimate at the sight of red color everywhere. It is unclear whether Boston’s love affair with red has any connection with Harvard, but the Red Line did get its name from the university. When first opened it was called “Cambridge Connection” or “Cambridge Main Street Subway”. The MBTA bought it over from Boston Elevated Railway in 1964, and the next year they tried to mark different subway lines with various colors. Thanks to its origin from Harvard, which prides itself on the world-famous “Harvard Crimson”, this line was renamed “the Red Line”.

Boston is among the first of American cities to establish ties with China, and so is Harvard as a university. Since the early half of the nineteenth century, Boston merchants have begun to trade with China, and the city enjoyed prosperity from the lucrative maritime business. Harvard’s relationship with China can be traced back to the early twentieth century when the Qing government started to send students abroad. As one of the earliest American universities to receive these students, Harvard remains a key academic institution of Chinese studies. People still take delight in talking about two events that occurred in the Republican era. The first is that Yuan Shikai, upon the recommendation of Charles Eliot, former President of Harvard University, employed Frank Goodnow, the renowned American political scientist and expert on administrative law, to draft a constitution for China. Goodnow completed two between 1913 and 1915. In a speech delivered at the Conference in Memory of the 1911 Revolution on October 29, 2011, William C. Kirby (Professor of Harvard Business School, Director of the Fairbank Center for East Asian Research, and Chairman of the Harvard China Fund) made the following remark: “Goodnow had drafted two constitutions: the first one would make- actually it did make Yuan Shikai president for life, and the second one would have made him emperor if he had not died soon. So this was Harvard’s contribution to Chinese democracy.” There is much truth behind the sarcastic humor. The second event happened in 1936, when a giant marble stele, reportedly coming from the imperial court, was presented by the Chinese alumni to celebrate the 300th anniversary of Harvard University. The stele, standing west to the Widener Library and within 500 feet from the famous John Harvard Statue, is now a well-protected cultural relic in Harvard Yard.

Today the tie between Harvard and China is closer than ever. A student of Harvard can have access to the abundant collections of Chinese books at the Harvard-Yenching Library and the Fairbank Center, attend lectures at Ash Center of Kennedy School of Government and East Asian Research Center of Harvard Law School, and come across students, scholars, government officials and tourists from all over China. All these, together with the Harvard crimson, evoke in me warm and wonderful associations. However, I cannot say I was pleasantly impressed by an article from Slate, a well-known online magazine under the control of the Washington Post Company. This article, dated at May 23^rd, used my favorite and respected color in its title—“The East is Crimson.”—but associated Harvard with a political scandal in China, introducing China’s training program and some current students and graduates in a mocking and ridiculing tone. I have a strong intuition and appeal from the bottom of my heart: Harvard crimson is bright red tinted with blue, closer to China’s deep and bright reds, an indication of depth and prudence embracing warmth and intensity. Could it be that the closeness in color suggests an agreement in spiritual temperament? The inscription on the stele proclaims culture to be the lifeblood of a country: a progressive country prospers on a vibrant culture, which in turn thrives on active learning and innovation. Innovation and reform characterize the essence of Chinese culture just as they distinguish Harvard culture. Isn’t that right? There is one color that can transcend time and space to inspire a common vision, and there is a red that can be renewed and revived by our shared humanity, which I name as the color of innovation—the East Crimson.

References:

A Century of Chinese Republics. Perf. William Kirby. Conference in Memory of the 1911 Revolution. North Shore Society, 30 Nov. 2011. Web. 5 Dec. 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoW2OHZjAPo>.

Cheney, Frank. Boston’s Red Line: Bridging the Charles from Alewife to Braintree. Charleston, SC: Arcadia, 2002. Print.

Denison, D. C. “Ideas Go Underground with ‘Innovation Express’.” The Boston Globe. The New York Times Company, 28 Oct. 2011. Web. 15 Sept. 2012. <http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2011/10/27/start-session-red-line/EqWyXP4YL0jvZ1tLmD7D1I/story.html>.

Faurst, Drew. “Innovation, Collaboration and Renewal – Lessons along the Red Line.” Speech. Office of the President. Harvard University, 1 May 2009. Web. 11 Apr. 2010. <http://www.harvard.edu/president/innovation-collaboration-and-renewal-lessons-along-red-line> .

Gordon, David S. and Arnold Howitt. Extending the Red Line to Arlington. Case study. Cambridge, Harvard Kennedy School, 1987. Print

Moskowitz, Eric. “MBTA’s Red-Blue Connector: Will It Ever Be Built?” The Boston Globe. The New York Times Company, 23 Sept. 2012. Web. 24 Sept. 2012. <http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2012/09/22/the-mbta-red-blue-connector-will-should-ever-built/ZLHD6Mru9YHtJwpEOFM5sO/story.html>.

Noel, Pugach. “Embarrassed Monarchist: Frank J. Goodnow and Constitutional Development in China, 1913- 1915.” Pacific Historical Review 42.4 (1973): 499-517. JSTOR. Web. 10 Sept. 2012.

A Chinese version of the article can be found at Sina Financial and Economics Blog.

Innovation Economy and an Economic “Oasis”

        If America wants to be a healthy, smart, rich, globalized, high-tech powerhouse, we arguably have no better model than Massachusetts.

—— Mark Vanhoenacker

       After the outbreak of the financial crisis, it did not take long for many U.S. economists and business leaders to recognize that innovation economy would be the key to brake recession and make possible a resurgence.  Paul Krugman defined the “great recession” as “the third depression” in the world’s history, and clearly stated that nothing but a new technological revolution that transforms the lifestyle and modes of production for all humanity could lift us out of the recession and usher in a new wave of economic growth.  Economist Tyler Cowen from George Mason University expressed a very similar view in his book, the Great Stagnation. Failing to accurately predict the crisis and defuse it in a timely manner, economists from various schools have been under great pressure. Yet while continuing to quarrel over the causes of the recession and short-term measures against it, few questioned or challenged the above positions. In the business arena, Warren Buffett have stricken home his point repeatedly: the value of the American system lies in innovation which unleashes human potential; innovation will lead America out of the predicament.  Steve Jobs also showed his confidence and believed that “as long as we innovate, we will be fine”. Gary Shapiro, CEO of American Consumer Electronics Association launched the innovation movement, a coalition of 100,000 citizens, wishing for a revival of innovation economy to spur America’s Comeback.

Winning the 2008 presidential election by advocating “change”, Obama has launched a series of policies and measures to promote innovation and economic development. In September 2009, he released “A Strategy for American Innovation: Driving towards Sustainable Growth and Quality Jobs”. In his 2011 State of the Union Address, Obama proposed “Startup America Initiative”. In February 2011, he announced the “Wireless innovation and Infrastructure Initiative” and “Better Building Initiative”. The “Government Reform for Competitiveness and Innovation Initiative” was established in his Presidential Memorandum in March 2011. Very recently in March 2012, Obama advanced manufacturing initiatives to drive innovation, create job growth and ultimately improve America’s competitiveness in global trade. For the Democratic Party and the Republican Party who have plunged into an unprecedented political fight, innovation has been one of the two issues on which both can easily reach consensus (the other is said to be criticism on China’s human rights situation). These initiatives, rekindling Americans’ hope and refreshing their commitment to innovation, increased investments in basic scientific research and proved effective in supporting clean energy development. However, the two parties diverge again when it comes to the intention and impacts of such initiatives. Hardcore Republicans see Obama’s policies as a continuation of the Bush Administration, with no novelty in content or effectiveness in execution. Obama’s followers, on the contrary, firmly believe that America has finally made its way back on the right path. For them, it was due to the lack of foresight and the mistakes of the previous administration that the present polices are taking longer to show their effects.

Along with the increasingly raucous party brawls, America’s recovery has been full of twists and turns. The revolutionary breakthrough in science and technology, much longed for by everyone, seems unlikely to take place in the near future. The economy has not fared well in the past few months: high unemployment rate (risen to 8.3% in July 2012), slow growth rate (1.5% for the 2nd quarter of 2012), persistently low consumer confidence (latest reported to hit the bottom in July 2012) …… All of these not only fogged the prospects of the nation’s economic recovery, but also cast a heavy shadow on Obama’s efforts to seek reelection. Some have even begun to question if America’s competitive advantage, centering on innovation, is gradually lost. The 40th Republican National Convention, closed just this past Friday, not only made official the nominees for the 2012 Presidential election, but tirelessly hammered the Obama administration’s poor economic performance, especially when it comes to job creation and innovation.  Fortunately, there remain a few unyielding oases in the largely devastated desert, which somehow represent and indicate the future hope of a 21-century “innovation America”. Massachusetts is among the most convincing ones.

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       Although Massachusetts has to bear the same troubles and miseries brought by the recession, it was able to buck the trend and had a couple of good shows. In comparison to the nation’s flagging economic situation that has lasted for a while, Massachusetts’ performance, if not outshining all others, has certainly been eye-catching.

• Massachusetts was eleven months later than the nation to enter recession (recession in Massachusetts started in November 2008 vs. December 2007 for the nation); in March 2010, Massachusetts took the lead into recovery. Its economic growth rate is over twice the national average (growth rate 4% in Q2, 2012).
• Unemployment rate in Massachusetts has been far lower than the national average (June 2012: US 8.2%, MA 6%); it created the record of a consecutive 16-month job growth during the recession.
• In March 2012, Massachusetts regained the top spot on 11^th Annual State Competitiveness Report, issued by the Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University (it was the third in 2010).
• Massachusetts ranked the first on Kauffman Foundation’s 2010 State New Economy Index. Washington came in second with an obvious gap.
• Boston, Massachusetts’ capital city, successfully broke into Economist magazine’s Global City Competitiveness Index, ranking top 10.
• In October 2010, American Council for an Energy Efficiency Economy placed Massachusetts as the most “energy efficient” state, replacing California.
• According to Massachusetts Divison of Health Insurance Finance and Policy, the state’s insurance coverage ranks first in the nation: the uninsured rate has dropped to 1.8%, and the uninsured rate for children is as low as 0.2%.
• Massachusetts has the best schools in America. Education Week’s 2012 report ranks Massachusetts the second on the overall index; but on two of the index’s most important measures- a lifetime educational Chance for Success index and a K-12 Achievement index, the state leads the nation. According to 2011 Harvard survey, the reading skills of Massachusetts’ high schoolers is fifth worldwide, and math skills the ninth, ahead of both Japan and Germany.

Particularly noteworthily, Standard and Poor’s (S&P), in view of the state’s outstanding performance in fiscal control and budget balance for recent years, upgraded the credit rating for Massachusetts to AA+ from AA in September 2011. Previously, the state had gained ratings of Aa1 from Moody’s and AA+ from Fitch. Taken together, this set of ratings gave Massachusetts its highest credit standing in history, contrasting starkly to the fact that S& P downgraded the credit rating for America about a month earlier. Such hard-earned results truly made the government and state legislature leaders happy and excited for quite a while. Most importantly, it added new confidence and motivation to the future development of Massachusetts.

Aiming at promoting collaborative activities among government, industry, universities and research institutes as well as advancing the healthy development of a high-tech oriented knowledge economy, Massachusetts state legislature established a specific economic cooperation organization, Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (shortened as MTC). Ever since 1997, MTC has released Index of the Massachusetts Innovation Economy on a yearly basis.  Through a comparative analysis against other US technology leading states as well as other countries and regions with advanced science and technology, the Index makes an objective evaluation of the annual performance of Massachusetts’ innovation economy, clarifies the elements propelling or constraining innovation and economy, with the hope of providing some valid suggestions to policy makers, business managers and academic leaders. In 2004, MTC founded John Adams Innovation Institute, named after the second president of America, to lead the writing of the report. Beginning with a striking title, “Massachusetts USA leading the Innovation Revolution”, the preamble to the 2011 index fully recognized the state’s remarkable achievements in 2010 and further pointed out, “The Massachusetts Innovation Economy is one of the state’s key advantages in the global economy and an engine of prosperity for our citizens. It is also a source of resilience amidst national and global economic uncertainty.”

This preamble arouses one’s curiosity about the root causes and the historical origins of the economic prosperity and social progress witnessed in the Commonwealth.

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      When it comes to innovation in Massachusetts, almost all commentators would trace its history back to two or three hundreds years ago, or probably even four hundred years ago. Most of them would also be citing the many “best”, “No.1” and “leading place” that the state and the Greater Boston area have created in the history of America in order to reinforce Massachusetts’ position and image of an “innovator”. From the moment in the early seventeenth century when the pilgrims set foot on the continent of North America, settlers of the New England region, those in Massachusetts being the most representative ones, have begun their long journey of arduous pioneering. The dream and efforts of these early colonists to build a “City upon the Hill” reaped rich fruits on this not-so-fertile piece of land.

From the establishment of “Mayflower Compact” to that of the first state constitution, from the first shot in the Independence War to the United States Declaration of Independence (documents record five Massachusetts residents signed it), numerous founding fathers dedicated themselves to the Great American Experiment, drawing the blueprint and laying the rudiment for a future America. By founding Harvard University and opening the first public school in the nation (Boston Latin Grammar School), through building the first free public school (Dorchester Mather School) and opening the first public library (Boston Public Library), Massachusetts has been brave in educational innovation and reforms, finally growing into a world-renowned intellectual city. Inventions in Massachusetts are simply impossible to enumerate: the electric light, the telegraph, the telephone, the computer, the sewing machine, the typewriter, the microwave and the razor; the initial clinical applications of the smallpox vaccine, the anesthetic ether and the penicillin; the first email successfully sent out and the smooth launch of liquid fuel powered rocket- the list goes on and on. Hundreds of thousands inventions and creations as such revolutionized the lifestyle and mode of production of Americans and of people around the world. Besides, Massachusetts was home to the first lighthouse, the first railroad, the first motorcar, the first man-made canal and the first subway line. It also took the lead in introducing the park, the cemetery, the seaside bathing spot, the countryside golf club and other public facilities alike. It was in Massachusetts where the first Thanksgiving was celebrated and the first Christmas card was printed. People in Massachusetts also had the privilege to watch the first basketball and volleyball matches as well as the marathon in 1890s. The “American system of manufacturing”, featured by interchangable parts, later sweeping the world and preceding Ford’s assembly line, claims Massachusetts as its cradle, so does the modern industrial park and venture capital. In one word, invention and innovation are inseparable from the Massachusetts history and have become an engrained cultural gene, unique to the region.

American English has a special word to describe the innovative characteristic of residents in Massachusetts and in the New England region as a whole: Yankee Ingenuity. Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines it as “the self-reliance of early colonial settlers of New England, United States”. The phrase is further elaborated as an attitude of make-do with materials on hand: it is “inventive improvisation, adaptation and overcoming of dire straits when faced with a dearth of resources”. I find it not fairly hard to locate an accurate equivalent in Chinese to fully bear the wealth of implications. Indeed, “Yankee ingenuity” is in fact where the nowadays much-lauded  “entrepreneurship” and “innovativeness” derive from. In the Bay state, one sees everywhere the upholding of tradition by the “politically-oriented” Massachusetts people. They not only have “the Spirit of America” engraved on their license plates, but also composed a song with “the Spirit of America” as its title and sing it widely as the unofficial state song.

With a deep understanding of and a warm respect for the history and culture, incumbent Massachusetts governor, Deval L. Patrick, stated proudly so in his first inaugural address: “Massachusetts invented America. American ideals were first spoken here, first dreamed about here… In so many ways, our struggle, our sacrifice, our optimism shaped the institutions and advanced the ideals of the nation.”  “Massachusetts invented America”, how boldly declared! This declaration, causing statewide and lasting resonance in the Commonwealth, was spread and eulogized broadly.

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       It took a long process of gestation and development before the “innovative spirit”grew into an “innovation economy”. With indomitable entrepreneurship, early pilgrims survived the many hardships and promoted the prosperity of business. Massachusetts and throughout the New England region have been leading America’s industrialization ever since they became the birthplace of the nation’s First Industrial Revolution in the mid-nineteenth century. As early as 1920s and 1930s, Massachusetts had witnessed economic transformation and industrial restructuring, both of which quietly carried on during the Great Depression. Starting from the latter part of World War II, as traditional industries accelerated outward migration and the federal government increased R & D investments, high-tech industries began to burgeon and grow in the Bay state. In 1950s and onward, scientists and engineers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology set out one after another to found high-tech enterprises in suburbs along Route 128, and a variety of resources that had long been stored up in the Greater Boston area swiftly integrated. A large number of entrepreneurial scientists and science-minded entrepreneurs embarked on the journey to open up the brand new field of “innovation economics” with innovative practices.

The thirty years from 1950s to 1980s steeled Massachusetts and got it well prepared for a powerful display of high-tech economy in mid 1980s. Overnight, Route 128 was known as “America’s Technology Highway”, and “Massachusetts Miracle” became a buzzword. However, such happy days did not last long. In late 1980s, Massachusetts once again sank into recession and stagnation. Compared to the shower of praises on Silicon Valley, Massachusetts and Route 128 were mourned by many. It was a moment when the Massachusetts people showed extraordinary courage and calmness. Self-collected, they adhered to a unique path of development and meanwhile, looked to other regions for successful experiences. A desperate counterattack was going on under a seemingly tranquil surface! From the birth of “Massachusetts Miracle” and its disillusionment, to the economy’s resurgence in late 1990s and finally to its prominent position nowadays, the ups and downs are worth a careful study.

Innovation economy has taken on new features in Massachusetts. Firstly, the industrial structure shows a tendency of diversification. Massachusetts’ high-tech industry, commonly viewed as being dominated by computer, information technology and the defense industry, actually includes other areas like financial services, bio-medicine, medical equipment, precision machinery, robotics industry, clean energy, architecture design and social media, all of which have achieved a leading place in the nation. Secondly, a multi-polar industrial layout has developed in Massachusetts. Route 128 remains the core location for high-tech industries, but has extended to Interstate 495. Areas along the subway Red Line and the Innovation District in South Boston have also attracted a considerable number of enterprises and research institutions. In addition to Boston and Cambridge, such satellite towns as Springfield, Worcester, Bedford and Woburn too formed industrial parks with distinctive functions. Thirdly, multilateral collaboration constitutes the impetus for econimic development. While solidifying its own edge, Massachusetts draws on development lessons from other emerging high-tech industrial clusters, Silicon Valley being only one of them, and has nurtured a positive cooperation mechanism made up by universities, research institutions, financial and consulting agencies, enterprises and the government. Cross-industry, cross-sectoral and interdisciplinary scientific and industrial development projects came up in an endless fashion, contributing to the regional economic prosperity. These new trends and features are all built upon innvation economy; in other words, the innovative practices carried out by the various economic elements on all level of economic activities are the fundamental driving force. Put differently, economic growth relies primarily on knowledge creation, technological innovation and entrepreneurship. Scott Kirsner, an active Massachusetts economist and columnist on innovation economics, articulates in his article “Innovation City”, “Boston is a city that attracts people who want to work in industries that have existed here since Massachusetts was a British colony; it is also the city for those who believe that the only industry worth working in is the one they’re about to create.”  Referring to Boston, these words are in fact a true portrayal of the entire Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

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      “Innovation economy” is a new term born from the unremitting exploration and successful practice of innovation in Massachusetts. The term makes most frequent appearances in innovation economy index reports and is largely promoted through the efforts of media and consulting agencies in the Greater Boston area. The academic discussion of “innovation”, however, needs to be traced to the classical definition in Joseph Schumpeter’s 1942 book Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy.  In Schumpeter’s opinion, “creative destruction”, as an intrinsic factor of capitalism, describes the phenomenon that commercial enterprises under capitalism destroy and eliminate old technologies and production systems through innovation competition (rather than price competition), break the original market equilibrium and establish a new production system and market order, gaining lucrative profits in the process. Such a concept opened the gate to innovation, from where a novel school of economics-innovation economics- emerged. Attending closely to knowledge, technology, entrepreneurship and the role innovation plays in economic growth, innovation economists, however, rarely use the term “innovation economy”. Similarly, the word “innovation”, in spite of being widely applied in the daily lives of ordinary Americans and broadly employed in the fields of politics, economy, culture and education, is in definition still mainly confined to the scope of technology and economic activities. When I was exploring a new regional development strategy for Changping in 2007 as mayor of the district, I looked extensively for the word “innovation economy” in the literature of innovation economics, but failed to find any. So I summarized my strategy as “ to vigorously develop laboratory economy and build an integrated regional innovation system of industry, academia and research”. As I did not have the access to documents in Massachusetts, I chose “laboratory economy” to carry my idea. Now thinking about it, “Innovation economy” would have been a more appropriate pick.

Guided by the “innovation prophet” Schumpeter, a series of glittering names such as Paul Romer, Elhanan Helpman, Brian Arthur, Robert Axtell, Eric Beinhocker, Richard R. Nelson, Richard Lipsey, Michael Porter and Christopher Freeman stand one after the other as signposts on the “innovation avenue”. The latest progress and breakthrough with innovation economics would have to be Michael Porter’s theory of national and regional competitive advantage. The aforementioned state competitiveness index issued by Suffolk University is exactly based on the measurement system put forward by Porter in discussing national and regional competitive advantage, i.e. eight groups of more than forty indicators altogether with a stress on per capita income and the capacity of sustainable economic growth. Schumpeter was a Harvard professor, so is Porter. From regional competitiveness to innovation economy index, the two reports echo each other, on both of which Massachusetts singles itself out. Can we conclude then, “innovation economy leading regional development” will be the next research subject for innovation economics?

No matter how the academic prospects of “Innovation economics” turn out to be, Massachusetts in THE place to feel the tremendous vitality brought about by “innovation” and “innovation economy”.  Thanks to my previous career experience, I have kept paying special attention to Governor Patrick’s political agenda and performance since I arrived here. His overall political agenda does revolve around “innovation economy” and his daily schedule is filled with innovation businesses: laying the foundation for innovation district, cutting the ribbon of school innovation laboratory, addressing at an annual student conference of history and innovation, proclaiming Massachusetts “innovation month”, writing an open letter to encourage student entrepreneurs and signing Social Innovation Compact with non-profit non-govrenmental agencies, to name only a few. Hardworking, pragmatic and full of pioneering spirits, the governor has won good wills and respect from his citizens. A vigorous advocate for the use of clean energy, an enthusiastic participator in the Race to Top program funded by the US Department of Education, a top leader in the social innovation program Pay for Success, Patrick has been faithfully practicing Obama’s innovation initiatives all along.

Deval Patrick, a Democrat, an African American, is rumored to have very close personal connections with Obama. Will this Democratic political star help Obama keep Mitt Romney, former governor of Massachusetts, away from the White House? How much would Massachusetts, as a preliminary manifestation of the power and significance of innovation economy, assist Obama with his final race in November? Let’s wait and see!

References:

Cowen, Tyler. The great stagnation: how America ate all the low-hanging fruit of modern history, got sick, and will (eventually) feel better. New York: Dutton, 2011.

Kao, John. Innovation Nation: how America is losing its innovation edge, why it matters, and what we can do to get it back. New York: Free Press, c2007.

Kirsner, Scott. “Innovation City”. The Good City. Ed. Emily Hiestand and Ande Zellman. Boston, Massachusetts: Beacon Press, c2004. 58-73.

“MIT’s 150 Ideas, Inventions and Innovations that Helped Shape Our World.” May 15, 2011. < http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/specials/mit150/mitlist/ >

Porter, Michael E. The Competitive Advantage of Nations. New York: the Free Press, 1990.

Saxenian, Annalee. Regional Advantage: Culture and Competition in Silicon Valley and Route 128. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1994

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Vanhoenacker, Mark. “Don’t Mess with the Bay State” . May 14, 2012. <http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2012/05/massachusetts_is_the_best_state_in_the_union_.html >

A Chinese version of the article can be found at Sina Financial and Economics Blog.

A Journey to Explore Innovation

                                                                                                                                                                                                      Day by day, make it anew.

        —— The book of Rites·The Great Learning

        I had not originally made plans to open a blog like this but was rather encouraged to do so by a good friend. However, once I decided to write a blog, I have given the day it should begin careful consideration. Today, August 26, 2012, is the two-year anniversary of my arrival in the United States to pursue further studies. Being such a significant-to-me date, I chose it to begin this blog. As I reflect on the path that has led me to make the decision to come to the US, I want to summarize the seven hundred and thirty days that I have spent living and working in this foreign land while discussing my future writing and research plans. Mine may seem an unusual life journey revolving as it does around issues pertaining to innovation.

I. Dream of Seven Years

It was as bright as day outside. Breaking free from noise and turbulence we had been experiencing, the plane finally entered into a smooth state. From ten thousand meters high, I gazed down at the sea of clouds. Thousands of thoughts suddenly filled my heart…

In little more than a year after leaving Peking University, the idea of returning grew strong in my heart. At the end of 1999, I was transferred to the Youth League Beijing Committee and appointed deputy secretary, thenceforth launching on my political career, one which from most perspectives seemed to be filled with bright prospects. Compared to gladness from rising through the ranks and to expectations of future promotions, I was more pleased to be given the opportunity to put my educational knowledge to practical use and verification outside the “ivory towers” of academia. The transition from the campus into the “real” world was an exciting one for me, full of joy and even a bit of impatience to achieve success and overcome the challenges inherent to the office of which I had been given charge. Running among endless business meetings and entertainment obligations, growing accustomed to the applause, flattery and smiling faces I encountered as a part of my position, as well as facing successfully the attendant struggles and difficulties my office presented, I seemed, on the surface at least, to be a happy and fortunate young man. Yet, at the same time I often found myself confused and bewildered. The idea of continuing work at a university as a scholar had steadily sprouted in my heart and mind. Such a return to comparatively simple enjoyment as well as a personally fulfilling life, and to do something I truly love while still in my prime did not disappear or even weaken when I was promoted to the office of secretary at the end of 2001.

It was in the summer of 2003 when I made the decision to return to academia. Although I seldom mentioned it to others, I had privately started all kinds of preparatory work. Change is inevitable; and what have to be well chosen are the timing and the manner of goodbye. My return to school is a certain move; and what need to be confirmed are the specific university and research field. In summer 2005 when I finished my dissertation defense for Peking University’s Law School, I formally reported my thoughts to the leadership at Beijing Committee of the Communist Party of China, and fortunately secured their understanding and support. My plan then was to take one year off to study abroad, further my study on the legislation of digital governance- research that I started during my doctoral period, and decide on my future career path upon my return. So, in my spare time, I began taking English courses and contacting overseas universities for application-related matters.

However, things took a twist in spring 2006. With no knowledge in advance, I was sent to work in Changping District. Offered such trust from my superiors and the organization, and seeing the expectations from cadres and people of Changping, I made a commitment in an official talk with the municipal leadership, half a year later, to fully dedicate myself to Changping and put aside for the moment my study plans. Such a promise was completely from my heart and out of my own volition. I have long held the firm belief to accomplish whatever task I have chosen, or those life’s opportunities have presented me, to the very best of my abilities. I want always to be able to move on without regret. I also would like to make sure every time I have performed my responsibilities in such a manner that those following me will not be troubled by things I have left undone or incorrectly done. Besides, I soon discovered Changping District to be wonderfully lovable and very much worth my unreserved devotion. Therefore, in the subsequent four years in Changping, I never brought up the plan of studying abroad again. Yet certainly, I never abandoned those thoughts either.

In June 2010, I at last realized my dream to return to the university. During the four years in Changping, I took the office of governor and party chief, in sequence, and completed the two historical tasks of undertaking the Olympics projects and serving the national holiday celebration. In November 2010, I made a formal application to the parent organization and leadership to leave the office and rejoin the university faculty following a period of study and research. In the first half of 2010, I resigned from office as party chief of Changping, became a member of the county bureau level leadership training class at the Party School of CPC Beijing Committee, and ultimately, joined the faculty of Beijing Normal University… Unhindered as it appeared, the process was full of twists and turns. Yet in general, I was lucky. It was indeed not easy to complete the transformation of identity and change of career with maximum understanding and minimum attention!

The aircraft landed smoothly at Boston Logan International Airport. A couple of days ago, a typhoon passed through the New England region. Although it did not severely affect local residents, the ravages of a summer storm could still be seen upon leaving the terminal. In this dark night of wind and rain, new life began …

II. Studying at Harvard

After a hectic first month, things settled down for the most part. One friend who had business in the States came as promised and brought me six cartons containing about three hundred Chinese books. When attending the welcome dinner arranged by Harvard China Fund, I had my first informal speech in Harvard. The dozen of attendees invited to the dinner party were all institution heads with expertise on China’s issues. Some of them were internationally known Sinologists. I have consequently kept up communications and established good relations with a number of them. In our future conversations, they repeatedly mentioned that  “very impressive” speech I made the other evening.

“… My supervisor once asked me, ‘So many scholars have written so many books and articles, but who really listen to their opinions? Why do you have to join them?’ My answer was, ‘I chose such a transition to scholarship, only to gain happiness and contentment in pursuit of knowledge. I do not care particularly if my opinions are adopted or even my voice heard by others.’ Now, when I am able to see the Harvard motto of ‘VERITAS’ almost every day, I am reassured that I have come to the right place.”

Harvard University, praised as “spiritual home” by many scholars, has now finally become a new starting point in my journey towards knowledge and truth!

Later, I came to see that not just Harvard, but Boston, Massachusetts and even the greater part of Eastern America are all treasure troves to observe and reflect on the nation’s innovation! The position held by some Chinese scholar that “ East America is about politics and West America about innovation” seemed indeed biased and superficial.

I set for myself three tasks for my initial two years at Harvard: reading, observing and thinking.

I finished over one hundred Chinese books, which for the past decade I “had the money to purchase but not the time to read”. I took twelve innovation-related courses at Harvard and MIT as well as participated in nearly a hundred academic activities, large and small. I also collected books and papers needed for writing, and formulated preliminary research ideas and a basic framework for my study.

I visited over ten US cities and towns, and conducted over fifty research-related discussions and interviews. I also had the privilege to borrow a spacious house from a friend. Through access to local communities, I gained in-depth understanding of how Americans truly live their lives. When my elder daughter later joined me in the States, for schooling and medical assistance, my knowledge and thoughts about America’s health care and educational systems was further deepened. In a phrase, what I have harvested in the past two years far exceeded the seeds of my expectations.

With fewer phone calls and barely any banquet requests, I was finally able to enjoy tranquility and freedom. Away from the distractions of a busy social schedule, I was able to hear and listen to the yearnings of my heart. To have adequate time to savor knowledge and truth is surely bliss for me, someone who needs time for contemplation.  A friend came to the States, on a special trip to visit me, to find out how things were going for me. He said to me before his departure, “We were all very worried when you made your choice. We even had a sense of tragedy. But now, having seen for myself how you study and live here, I cannot help but applaud for you.  What you are doing seems heroic!”  I appreciated my friend’s concerns and understanding, but I explained to him, “In fact, it was not tragic then nor heroic now. It is simply that I chose at middle age to have the normal and ordinary life of a scholar.  Such, I think, is a true portrayal of my two years’ at Harvard as a visiting scholar.

III. Aiming at innovation

In the States, I have focused my research on innovation theory and its applications. My goal is to explore the system and mechanism issues involved in constructing an innovative nation. My plan is to spend at least one, and at most three years putting together a piece of academic work, which I trust will have value and which I have tentatively entitled “Innovation in America”. From today on, I will publish my thoughts regularly on this blog, sharing my experiences and insights with all of you, in hope of responses and suggestions. A bird sings out to draw friends!

Such research directions, thoughts and plans were finalized at the beginning of 2009 when I was still in Changping. After working in Changping for one year, I gradually formed the idea of establishing a regional innovation system that integrates industry, learning and research. Centering on this idea, I mobilized forces to carry out lots of research work. While the work was fruitful, I discovered there was a lack of both academic achievements and practical experience in the field. There were too many blank areas. Digging further, I found, in stark contrast with the international community, domestic study on innovation was similar in content and without much depth, making it incredibly difficult to achieve such a lofty goal as building an innovative nation. I am someone who would rather understand something in the most complete fashion possible before taking action than do something before having figured out how. As I comprehended increasingly better about innovation, I find myself more eager than ever to learn still more. Through reconsidering what I had been doing since mid 1990s, I decided to orient my research toward “innovation” following my transition to become a scholar. I am determined to exhaust the rest of my life on a topic with such major theoretical and practical significance.

I taught in Peking University for five years after graduating from its master’s program. My research interests then were higher education and university campus culture. I not only published papers and books, but organized academic seminars as well. During Peking University’s one hundredth anniversary and the celebration of the eightieth anniversary of the “May Fourth” Movement, I called for contemporary youths, especially young college students, to be builders with innovativeness. Such constituted the main theme of my work: to nurture rational builders who “promote innovation and transcend passion”. After taking office at the Youth League Beijing Committee, I again proposed the working mentality of “construction, service, innovation and development”. By advocating turning the Youth League into a learning and service-oriented youth organization, I hoped to achieve the modernization of youth work.

From Peking University to the Youth League and then to Changping, my main line of work had been experimenting with and exploring “innovation”. To integrate other theories and practical issues under the framework of “innovation” was the important goal I assiduously sought after during my later term in Changping. With such thoughts and directions, I became more than ever determined to leave my political post for scholarship and faculty work. For me, it is no problem to have a late start and a slow speed- as long as the direction is correct. Yet, it is very troublesome and too risky to have a high starting point and fast speed if one is heading in the wrong direction. In this sense, grateful as I am to be moving on my life into the field of research and study, a large portion of my heart remains with the colleagues and friends in both the Youth League and Changping. The six years spent working in the Youth League Beijing Committee and the four years in Changping District had blessed me with invaluable experience in youth work and local governance, respectively. In addition, these years not only allowed me to devote my wisdom and labor to a beloved land and community, but also recalibrated the direction for my research. Most importantly, I was made completely fearless in chasing my dreams! I am forever thankful for the Youth League and Beijing’s outstanding youth group! I forever appreciate Changping and its people from the bottom of my heart!

It was too in Changping where I developed my hobbies of climbing mountains, and meditating while walking. I often enjoyed having simple and delicious food at roadside shops and farmyards. Whenever I walk along Charles River or order simple food from the many small restaurants in Harvard Square, I experience a joy similar to that with which I grew accustomed back home! It is the pleasure of delicious food and breathtaking scenery; it is also satisfaction from pursuing “innovation” which I shall blog about to share with you, my friends, in days to come.

Having written thus much and into the wee hours Beijing time. Let’s, without further ado, hit the road at this night-ending moment!

 A Chinese version of the article can be found at Sina Financial and Economics Blog.