As part of the Youth Jobs Strategy, the Ontario Government has announced funding for Campus-Linked Accelerators (CLAs) and On-Campus Entrepreneurship Activities (OCEAs) to facilitate the development of entrepreneurial activity in Ontario's universities and colleges. CLAs and OCEAs will be an important step in the evolution of Ontario’s entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is accepting applications for the Research Evaluation and Commercialization Hub (REACH) program to support proof-of-concept centers (Hubs) that facilitate and accelerate the translation of biomedical innovations into commercial products that improve patient care and enhance health. NIH intends to award approximately $9 million to institutions of higher education to establish three new REACH Hubs.

The Michigan Strategic Fund (MSF) board of directors has designated $6.8 million for the Michigan Pre-Seed Fund 2.0, a statewide investment fund aimed at supporting high-tech early stage companies.

In the Washington region and across the country, the number of government-backed business incubators and accelerators has grown as public officials look for ways to support entrepreneurs, spur innovation and bolster their local economies. However, not every space employs the same business model, uses taxpayer dollars in the same manner or offers the same resources to its companies. And this leaves plenty of room for debate over what works and what doesn’t when the government tries to support start-ups.

The NECEC Institute today released New England's Cleantech Innovation Landscape, which is the first region-wide study of the cleantech innovation cluster that examines both early-stage cleantech companies in New England as well as the regional infrastructure available to support business growth.

With the economy finally gaining steam after four years of a stop-and-start recovery, the Kauffman Foundation kicked off its “America's New Entrepreneurial Growth Initiative” at the fifth annual State of Entrepreneurship Address. The main output will be a New Entrepreneurial Growth Agenda by early 2016.

On February 5, 2014, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker joined Enrique Jacob Rocha, President of the Mexican National Entrepreneurship Institute (INADEM), to deliver remarks at a breakfast hosted by the Mexico-United States Entrepreneurship and Innovation Council (MUSEIC) and the American Chamber of Commerce. Founded shortly after President Obama’s visit to Mexico in May 2013, MUSEIC brings together stakeholders from both the United States and Mexico to strengthen regional economic competitiveness and support entrepreneurship, a key Obama administration priority. 

Boston's first annual Innovation and the City conference was held on January 9-10, 2014 at District Hall in the city's Innovation District. The colloquium convened scholars, policy makers, and practitioners to explore the opportunities and drawbacks associated with innovation-based urban economic development. Speakers included Bruce Katz (Brookings Institution), Paul Parkhill (Spaceworks NYC), and Dan Kinkead (Detroit Future City).

In this op-ed published in the Telegraph, Karen Mills -- the most recent Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration and a key collaborator in the U.S. Cluster Mapping Project -- discusses the primary currency for economic growth and prosperity. As Ms. Mills notes, today's economy is driven by innovation and well-paying jobs. While at SBA, she worked across inter-agency programs to leverage support for high-growth firms, as well as for public-private partnerships that create vibrant ecosystems for entrepreneurs across the country.