Do you remember the scene in the Wizard of Oz when Dorothy, the Tin Man and the Scarecrow sang about "lions and tigers and bears, oh my!"? That came to mind as I was reflecting on the past month in the Innovation District. There have been gatherings of dozens, hundreds and thousands of people to celebrate the phenomenal science and technology ecosystem in St. Pete.
Earlier this week several dozen attended the 1st Anniversary of the Maritime and Defense Technology Hub. Hundreds were in attendance at the beginning of February when I had the opportunity to share our work at a national summit in Washington DC on Digital Transformation hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce. And over 12,000 attendees came to the St. Petersburg Science Festival and MarineQuest on Saturday, February 18th.
Its great to see the different ways that science and technology is flourishing in St. Pete and the engagement of all ages in these efforts.
(This article was first featured in our February newsletter -to subscribe to our monthly newsletter click here)
Over the last few months I have used this space in the newsletter to create a picture of what it takes to foster innovation. November 2023 newsletter: Innovation is a team sport. It requires diverse perspectives and experiences to find a creative solutions. It requires courage to try things out and be willing to learn what won’t work as much as what will work. It requires tenacity to keep going and going and going.
Thank you to Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital (JHACH) for sponsoring and hosting our inaugural Morning Sparks: Innovation X-change breakfast. The event was kicked off by Alicia Schulhof, President of JHACH, and followed by an overview of the topic - Artificial Intelligence - by Dr. John Licato of USF's Advanced Machine and Human Reasoning Lab.
Kudos to the Volunteers of America Florida, City of St. Petersburg, and Pinellas County for the recent opening of the new downtown apartments, located in the Innovation District called Innovare. Innovare’s 50 apartments provide stable homes for individuals and families who earn 60 percent or less of the Area’s Median Income (AMI), including many who are transitioning from homelessness.