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Mark your calendars! The Prosperity Partnership’s annual Fall Luncheon will be held on Wednesday, November 1, 2006 at noon at the Westin Hotel in downtown Seattle. The event promises to be another fantastic celebration of our progress and an opportunity to discuss next steps. For more information, contact Eric Schinfeld at eschinfeld@psrc.org Other important events from our Partners: Governor’s Life Sciences Summit 2006 Regional Leadership Conference |
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Prosperity Partnership E-Newsletter
Prosperity Partnership Builds Bridges Over the Cascades
In the Tri-Cities, participants viewed the Volpentest HAMMER training facility and learned about research being conducted at Battelle’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory ranging from building a more efficient and reliable power system, to increasing the profitability of bio-fuel production. The group also toured Puget Sound Energy’s Hopkins Ridge wind project which is not only generating clean, renewable energy for the entire state, but also providing new jobs and tax revenues to the area. At Washington State University, the delegation inspected disease-curing research, cutting edge work to improve portable power storage, and technologies that create new bones from scratch for use in reconstructive and other surgeries. The trip culminated in Spokane with attendees seeing firsthand the city’s fantastic downtown revitalization. Governor Gregoire Praises Prosperity Partnership
The Partnership’s efforts received strong praise from the Governor who said, “I too join in the Prosperity Partnership’s vision of what we need to do.” In particular, she spoke about the importance of education and the work that the Partnership is doing to increase the number of Bachelor degrees being produced by our universities. “Open up those doors as wide as you can get,” she encouraged. “The cornerstone to our success…is all about education.” The Governor emphasized that by focusing on issues that are preventing the state from being successful, Washington will increase its ability to compete in a global marketplace. “I am very indebted to the Prosperity Partnership for their visionary leadership,” she said. Puget Sound Leaders Meet with Partners in Eastern Washington The Prosperity Partnership Eastern Washington Tour provided an opportunity for leaders from both sides of the mountains to discuss issues of mutual importance and the things that unite us as a state. Conversation topics ranged from large policy issues like tax reform with State Senator Mike Hewitt, to the logistics of how to better move agricultural and manufacturing products throughout the state and the country. David Tang of Preston, Gates & Ellis, who is leading the Partnership’s Higher Education Working Group, presented a proposal to increase the number of Bachelor degrees coming out of our universities, especially for high demand industries like science, engineering and health care. Not only was the reaction positive, but Eastern Washington leaders also pledged to work with us to see it through to fruition. Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown summed up the sentiment that was expressed over and over again. “Eastern Washington and this community share the goals of the Prosperity Partnership, and this is a great example of the kinds of connections that can be made throughout the state.”
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In June, over 50 business, government and community leaders from the Prosperity Partnership toured Eastern Washington to strengthen ties between the east and west sides of our state and find new ways to partner on improving economic prosperity for all. It was also an opportunity to discuss larger issues of shared importance like higher education, taxes and transportation. 
The Prosperity Partnership’s Eastern Washington Tour was capped off by a luncheon sponsored by the Boeing Company in Spokane. The keynote address was delivered by Washington Governor Chris Gregoire who highlighted many of the same competitiveness issues that the Prosperity Partnership has been advocating, from life sciences to transportation. 
