Overview

September 17
11AM PT, 2PM ET

Register

As federal R&D funding declines, state and local governments face an important choice: absorb the loss, or seize the moment to strategically focus their resources on the innovation ecosystems where they can lead. States now have a valuable opportunity to complement remaining federal investment and gain more direct influence over what research happens in their region and which direction their innovation ecosystems take. By adding state resources on top of federal dollars, states can amplify impact in the research areas that matter most to their region. But with fewer resources than the federal government, states can't fund every priority equally, making it critical to know exactly where state and local dollars will have the greatest strategic return.

This webinar will show how state government leaders and economic development officials can use research intelligence to identify their region's competitive research strengths, understand the landscape of players and institutions already active in those spaces, and make more strategic decisions about where to direct limited public resources. Rather than spreading funding thin or guessing at priorities, attendees will leave with a clearer framework for turning federal funding cuts into a strategic opportunity for state-led growth.

By attending this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Understand the shifting R&D funding landscape and what declining federal investment means for state and regional innovation strategy
  • Identify their state or region's comparative research strengths using data-driven intelligence
  • Map the competitive landscape of institutions, researchers, and organizations already active in key research areas
  • Develop a strategic framework for allocating state R&D and innovation funding

Join the live webinar to obtain your complimentary certificate of attendance!

Speakers

Dr. Shirley Han headshot

Dr. Shirley Han

Director of Research Analytics, Digital Science

Dr. Xueying (Shirley) Han is the Head of Research Analytics at Digital Science. A policy expert with deep roots in the federal space, Dr. Han previously served as a Program Director at the National Science Foundation (NSF) within the Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (TIP). At NSF, she helped establish frameworks to accelerate U.S. innovation and competitiveness in critical and emerging technologies, developing metrics to assess the impact of large-scale federal investments. Prior to this, she served as Assistant Director at the Science and Technology Policy Institute (STPI), a federally funded research and development center for the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). Her work focuses on the intersection of science, emerging technologies, and national security, with specialized expertise in U.S.-China S&T policy, innovation competitiveness, and the global migration of STEM talent.

Sean McSpaden headshot

Sean McSpaden — Moderator

Senior Fellow, Center for Digital Government

Sean McSpaden is an executive level information technology professional with over 30 years of experience in the private, non-profit, and public sectors. His background includes the start-up and management of several small businesses and he has served on the Board of Directors or in Executive Director positions for several 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations. Sean’s public service experience includes progressively responsible positions as an IT analyst, and in statewide coordination, management and leadership positions within the Executive and Legislative branches of Oregon state government.

From June 2008 to September 2013, Sean served as the state of Oregon’s Deputy State Chief Information Officer. Since 2013, Sean has served as a Principal Legislative IT Analyst with the Oregon Legislative Fiscal Office and as the Committee Administrator for Oregon’s Joint Legislative Committee on Information Management and Technology. In addition, Sean serves as a member Oregon’s Task Force on Artificial Intelligence and as Oregon’s representative to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Taskforce on Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Privacy.

Throughout his 26-year tenure in Oregon state government, Sean and the teams he has led have received several state, regional and national recognitions and awards. In addition, Sean has represented the state of Oregon on numerous state, regional and national project steering committees, task forces, governing boards, committees, commissions and associations, and has presented on various topics at local, state, regional, national, and international meetings and conferences.

Sean earned his Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree and Certificate of Public Management from the Willamette University, Atkinson Graduate School of Management. Sean is an ISACA Certified Information Security Manager (CISM) and holds a PMI Project Management Professional (PMP) certification.

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