70NANB22H166

Purpose: Rhode Island has identified the Blue Economy as a new major focus area for the future. Investments in the Blue Technology sector will be critical to the state as the world's ocean economy is expected to outperform overall global economic growth by the year 2030.

Activities to be performed: This proposed project will continue to build on the university's mission-based impacts to support Rhode Island and connect programs to the urban core of Providence in order to bridge the gap between the underserved communities and the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Within the Rhode Island Innovates 2.0 (State Economic Strategy) report, several recommendations were made to help grow the state's economy, including creating a unifying initiative around the emerging Blue Economy in the state that would build on the assets found at URI, the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, and other entities within the state and the region. Through careful planning and deliberate implementation, this proposed Blue Technology Innovation Center would provide an opportunity for all stakeholders engaged to leverage existing state resources and build the centralized infrastructure and programming needed to grow the ocean economy in the state.

Expected outcomes: The proposal envisions the larger Blue Economy cluster to recognize the following economic impacts which will be catalyzed by the planning and pilot programs in this proposal:
1) Increased job creation and retention in underserved and minority communities;
2) Development of new companies and expansion of existing companies;
3) Increased state and federal tax revenue;
4) Increased academic and commercial research and development capacity and activity;
5) Increase the capabilities and capacity of the Blue Economy by having BTIC serve as an intermediary between companies, academic institutions, state organizations, and other stakeholders; and
6) Reduce barriers to businesses operating within Rhode Island by working directly with the state to expand and build new programs, expand resources, and make technological advances.

Intended beneficiaries: URIRF will engage with multiple partners to execute impactful pilot programming to determine the most effective economic and job programs in the Blue Economy industry. The programming will target both startup and existing company growth and ensure engagement of a diverse population, including students and underserved communities.

Subrecipient activities: A total of $1,200,000 is requested to support contracting support services from partners. Partners will be competitively bid and contracted according to the Code of Federal Regulations specified by the federal funding source. Contract funding is requested for the following:
1) Architecture and design services for the Blue Innovation Technology Center at a project cost of $750,000;
2) Blue Technology acceleration and mentoring pilot programs for a total of $200,000; and
3) Facilities/equipment utilization pilot programming for institutions with facilities/equipment relevant to start-ups for a total of $250,000.

The University Of Rhode Island Research Foundation

11.617 - Congressionally-Identified Projects

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) [DOC]

Kingston, Rhode Island 02881-1966 United States

Single Zip Code

None

Amendment Since initial award the End Date has been extended from 09/30/23 to 09/30/25.