Recommendation

Congress should support the innovation potential of rural areas by creating rural innovation institutes.

Details

Many rural areas have suffered decades-long economic decline or stagnation. One way to restore their growth would be to boost their innovation potential. This would help those areas’ own economic growth prospects and contribute to America’s overall innovation system. Congress should support rural innovation by creating a nationwide network of rural innovation institutes in sectors such as aquaculture, agriculture, wind and water energy, mining, and timber. For example, Congress could task the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) with leading a major technology initiative around how to get more value-added out of rural communities through fishing, fiber, food, wind, water, etc. Such a program, perhaps in coordination with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership, also could build on and support existing rural manufacturing clusters, such as the carpet cluster in rural Alabama and the snowmobile cluster in northern Minnesota.

Keep reading:

▪ Stephen Ezell and Scott M. Andes, “Localizing the Economic Impact of Research and Development: Policy Proposals for the Trump Administration and Congress” (ITIF and Brookings Institution, December 2016), https://itif.org/publications/2016/12/07/localizing-economic-impact-research-and-development-policy-proposals-trump.

Updates

A version of this idea is being implemented under the Commerce Department’s Tech Hubs program—although, that program suffers from a lack of focus, as it is spread across multiple agencies with varying missions.

Keep reading:

▪ Robert D. Atkinson and Trelysa Long, “Tech Hubs or Tech Dispersion?” ITIF Innovation Files commentary, January 6, 2025, https://itif.org/publications/2025/01/06/tech-hubs-or-tech-dispersion/.