Think Locally, Impact Globally
- Competitiveness and Impact in Innovation Districts
Kendall Square Innovation District
By Taylor Witkin, Implementation Lead
Just 40 minutes northwest of Boston, at a bend in the Merrimack River, Lowell is embracing its roots as a textile innovator. No, the looms aren’t spinning again. But in 2018, UMass Lowell opened the Fabric Discovery Center “to drive innovation in functional fabrics, boost economic competitiveness and create more high paying jobs in the region” – part of a plan to turn 15 acres of underutilized waterfront into a vibrant mixed-use neighborhood.1 UML and State of Massachusetts, which invested $11.3 million in the Center, believe that “the synergy between high-tech fabrics and flexible electronics combined with robotics could change the world.”2 First, it’s changing Lowell.
Long a refrain of environmentalists and community activists, “think globally, act locally” takes on new life as cities across the US invest in innovation districts – urban ecosystems that foster creativity and entrepreneurship by re-conceiving the links between economy, place, and social networks.3 It’s fitting that the mantra is attributed to a city planner. In 1915, Patrick Geddes opined in Cities in Evolution that “‘local character’ is no mere accidental old-world quaintness…It is attained only in course of adequate grasp and treatment of the whole environment, and in active sympathy with the essential and characteristic life of the place concerned.”4
In a hyper-connected world dominated by global brands and convoluted intercontinental supply chains, success (read: funding, impact, competitiveness) for innovation districts depends, in part, on relevance at a global scale. That is, applicability to massive, interconnected, global challenges. Kendall Square would not be “the most innovative square mile on the planet” if the ideas and solutions generated there stayed only in Cambridge. The institutions, infrastructure, and social networks that make Kendall a local hub for innovation also afford entrepreneurs the opportunity to think beyond that square mile. Global thought translates to local action (Pfizer and Moderna, Cambridge-based companies developing Covid-19 vaccines now used around the world, come to mind) and economic benefit (jobs, taxes, local business). If scaled effectively, local impact can lead to global impact.
But while unicorns may exist, panaceas don’t. Holistic views can provide valuable insight into how we (individuals and institutions) find our niche and a desire to change the world is noble — but neither enable us to fix everything. Something that works in our town doesn’t necessarily work the same way in yours. Enter Geddes’ ‘local character.’ The “essential and characteristic life” of a place shapes its ideas.
“Kendall Square would not be ‘the most innovative square mile on the planet’ if the ideas and solutions generated there stayed only in Cambridge. The institutions, infrastructure, and social networks that make Kendall a local hub for innovation also afford entrepreneurs the opportunity to think beyond that square mile.”
In 2019, The US Congress Joint Economic Committee explored the ‘brain drain’ across the country, finding that:
Over the past 50 years, the United States has experienced major shifts in geographic mobility patterns among its highly-educated citizens. Some states today are keeping and receiving a greater share of these adults…while many others [are] hemorrhaging their homegrown talent and failing to attract out-of-staters.5
When people are compelled to move away en masse to pursue their dreams, they perpetuate a positive feedback loop that degrades culture and community, the building blocks of opportunity. As long as the drain persists, creating vacuums in some places and pools in others, we miss out on innovation driven by diverse geographies, histories, and resources.
So, how do we turn drains into catchment basins closer to home? After all, our ‘backyards’ are usually where we’re most creative. Local coffee shops, garages, and showers are where light bulbs go on and apples hit us on the head.
More and more, cities and states are developing innovation districts to spark, incubate, and accelerate new ideas, businesses, and economic growth. Like any successful business, they need a competitive advantage. To find that edge, innovation districts should thoughtfully consider their ‘local character’ as leverage to differentiate and enhance competitiveness and attractiveness for (local) talent. There is an active culture on or near the grounds you have in mind. In the spirit of open innovation, lean into it. They know better than you what will take root in that soil.
Cambridge, a hotbed for clean-tech, biotech and life science, can’t be everything for everyone. Within the jokes and derision about ivory towers, East Coast elites, and Dunkin’, there’s a real lesson about local taste and backyard value. Is a Michigander or Arkansan drawn to Greater Boston for the same reasons as someone like me, who grew up in Massachusetts and was educated entirely in New England? While I’m here for clam chowder, the Celtics, fall foliage, and because of the opportunities, the others may be here predominantly for the latter. (They certainly don’t come for the perpetual construction and astronomically high rent.)
Though the recipe for an innovation district may feel similar in different cities (with complementary economic, physical, and networking assets),6 each district requires its own je ne sais quoi, catering to the needs, tastes, and skill sets of its population and workforce. Lowell, Detroit, Gulfport and others should strive for the vibrancy of Kendall Square and similarly successful innovation districts, but that doesn’t mean trying to exactly replicate what Cambridge has. Each needs to be a distinct space that nurtures and amplifies the connections and ideas shaped by their unique ‘local character.’ These ideas can grow in magnitude and impact as they take on new life beyond the local ecosystem where they were born. World-shaping ideas don’t have to come from established hubs like Kendall Square –– they could be born 40 minutes away.
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