Borderless Innovation…Maintaining

Competitiveness in the 21st Century

Introduction Kenn Morris

Founder & Director of Crossborder Business Associates California-based crossborder market

research and strategic consulting firm specializing in border business and policy

Former Director of UCSD San Diego Dialogue’s Crossborder Innovation & Competitiveness Initiative

Lead researcher and lead author of Dialogue’s Borderless Innovation report

Overview of Comments Context of Challenge:

Why Worry? Border & NAFTA:

Outdated Paradigm Vision for Borderless

Innovation in San Diego-Baja California Region

Application of vision to Arizona-Mexico, border states, and North America

21st Century Competitiveness: Why Worry?

“World is Flat”: More than just China & India China: long term challenge Regional tech clusters: Large number of existing – and

emerging – regions of technology & innovation across globe Many regional economic development strategies not prepared

An issue for US, Mexico…and North America

Why Worry? Despite existing economic &

social linkages, US-Mexico relationship stuck at “border”

Few cases of open, public dialogue about weakening North American competitiveness

Fewer examples of policy leaders working to foster new paradigm for North America

New vision beyond NAFTA needed

A Regional Approach to Borderless Innovation

San Diego & Baja California: region of innovation, R&D, technology manufacturing

Given economic & social linkages, felt that a latent opportunity to catalyze regional synergies was possible…

…But no comparable data existed

Crossborder Innovation & Competitiveness Initiative: identify “clusters of opportunity” in high value-added sectors in the binational region

Focus on selected technology intensive clusters: biomedical devices, aerospace & defense, software, and others

Cluster Findings

Biomedical Devices Over 30,000 employed in Cluster (2003)

San Diego: 6,800 Baja California: 23,700

BC: highest number of FDA-certified BD companies in Mexico (65+) Many: Class 10,000 & 100,000 clean rooms

13 had HQ or operations in SD County

Range of products – heart pumps & stents, lenses, pacemakers, more…

Cluster Findings

Aerospace & Defense Over 23,000 employed in Cluster

(2003)

San Diego: 18,300 Baja California: 4,800

BC has highest concentration of aerospace companies in Mexico

Mexico: 9th largest aerospace supplier to US

US-MX BASA agreement pending

Binational S&T Workforce …Larger than expected,

and growing Surveyed large regional

universities Issuance of engineering

and software of note: More engineering degrees

issued by major BC universities than in SD (…industrial)

UABC graduated more individuals with software degrees than UCSD

A New Regional Model for SD-BC Recommendations for San Diego-Baja

California Crossborder Innovation & Competitiveness Centers

(leverage existing organizations and institutions) Research and comparable S&T data (foster

understanding) Private investor networks (foster investing) Increased educational linkages (physical & online)

and regional workforce training programs Promote shared infrastructure investments (energy,

water, digital) Increased security integration & enforcement

…Realized: Broader Implications

Implications for all of California Biomedical devices: Over

53,000 employed in CA Aerospace (Southern California) Automotive Software Semiconductors

…As well as the US-Mexico border states

Implications: Aerospace & Defense AZ: Large concentation of

aerospace companies (Raytheon, Honeywell, Boeing, etc.)

Aerospace education: Embry-Riddle, U of A, Maricopa Community College…and the ASU/ITESM crossborder Masters degree in Aerospace Logistics

35% of US aerospace employment in 4 US border states

Within 1100 miles of Phoenix, most of aerospace employment in the US and Mexico

Sept. 26th: Mexican Aerospace Conference…in Scottsdale

…Implications: Silicon Border Technology park in Mexicali, goal of 1-2 Fab facilities If successful…potential synergy with CA and AZ

semiconductor clusters (esp. Intel, Motorola, TI, Freescale, etc.)

… Not to mention concentration of semiconductor related employment (160k+) in 4 US border states

A Model – for the 21st Century North American Crossborder Innovation & Competitiveness

Initiative?

Take concept beyond San Diego-Baja California

Requires regional assessments in border states, and analysis of city-city and region-region “clusters of innovation & opportunity”

Some hope:

North American Council on Competitiveness

Emerging understanding of regional opportunities and economic development agreements (AZ-Sonora, maquiladora supplier promotion of TREO)

Opportunity for “Third Nation” to catalyze technology manufacturing and competitiveness for 21st Century – if we choose path of Borderless Innovation

Borderless Innovation… Maintaining Competitiveness in the

21st Century

Thank You – Gracias

Kenn Morriskenn@crossborderbusiness.com

CrossborderBusiness.comCopies of Borderless Innovation

report: www.sandiegodialogue.org