Kendall Square 4-17-13

Despite a historically strong anti-development bias in Cambridge, the City Council last week approved a new zoning law that will allow further transformation of the already growing Kendall Square. The new law, passed on April 8, approves plans for a new gateway to MIT facing the Kendall Square MBTA Station, the construction of some 1.1M square feet of new commercial space around the T stop, and hundreds of new housing units. (More details at  HarrisCom Blog:   http://wp.me/p1Hocg-Wy            ).

According to Tim Rowe, president of the Kendall Square Association and a founder of the Cambridge Innovation Center,  while, at last week’s meeting,  many Cantabridgians questioned the desirability of new buildings that could create traffic noise, “construction hassle and the like”, others emphasized the importance of innovation and entrepreneurship

“They spoke about how these endeavors are critical to our prosperity in these days of intense competition with other regions, how they bring jobs to residents all across the state, and how the fruits of the labors of our innovators and entrepreneurs are solutions to important problems facing the planet,” Rowe said. “What is super exciting to me is that our political leaders, by their vote, accepted these arguments.  This is a major win for innovation.”

In a blog posted to clients of the Cambridge Innovation Center–including me–Rowe emphasized that the Kendall Square community concerned about sustainability–as evidenced that  “despite millions of square feet of new buildings being built here” during the past decade, traffic in Kendall Square has actually dropped.

Rowe emphasized the need for additional state funding to ensure that the Red Line can keep up with demand in Kendall Square and urged his readers to tell their state senators and representatives to support Governor Deval Patrick’s proposal to invest  heavily in updating the Commonwealth’s transportation infrastructure.

Having worked in the Cambridge Innovation Center for nearly three years, I can attest to the vibrancy and vitality of this growing area.

–Anita M. Harris

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group, an award-winning public relations and digital marketing agency located in Kendall Square.

Mary Landrieu Speaks at Cambridge Innovation Center Venture Cafe

Tim Rowe, CEO, Cambridge Innovation Center and US Senator Mary Landrieu, at Venture Cafe, April 4, 2013. In her remarks, Landrieu emphasized the importance of the CIC–now the largest organization of its type in the world.
Photo by Bill Lichtenstein,  Lichtenstein Creative Media

–Anita M. Harris

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group, an award-winning public relations firm based in Kendall Square, Cambridge.

The Cambridge Innovation Center, (CIC) where I work,  has signed a new lease for 52,000 square feet of space on the 1st, 14th and 15th floors at 101 Main Street in Cambridge. 101 Main Street is two doors down from CIC’s current home at One Broadway. The new location is owned by RREEF Real Estate, the real estate investment business of Deutsche Asset Management.

CIC has already vastly expanded since I first started working there in the Spring of 2010; currently, some 450 companies and 1700 people rent space on seven floors.

According to a recent communiqué from the CIC, “ We have seen strong continuing interest from the CIC community to grow here in Kendall Square, as well as interest from many others not currently located at CIC. This new space will create increased space options and amenities for our current and future clients and most importantly, the space will create more opportunities for entrepreneurs to collaborate and flourish.

This is a 33% increase in the CIC”s  total space — to a total of 207,000 square feet in Kendall Square. Occupancy of the new space will begin in early March.

With the expansion, I hope that  the  stellar CIC team and residents will be able to maintain the warm,  friendly and stimulating community atmosphere that makes the CIC at 1 Broadway a wonderful place to work.

Anita M. Harris

Anita Harris is the founder and CEO of the Harris Communications Group, a collaborative team of experts  in public relations, social media, content and marketing services for health, science, technology and energy, worldwide.

Phillips Brooks House Association (PBHA) and Breakthrough Greater Boston (BTGB) , both based  in Cambridge,  have together raised more than $50,000 for vital summer youth programs, according to a recent communique from BTGB.

Sponsored by The Boston Foundation, the Giving Common Challenge was a 36-hour online event running from 8:00 a.m. on October 10 through 8:00 p.m. on October 11, 2012. More than 500 Massachusetts nonprofits competed for donations and more than $100,000 in time-based and grand prizes based on both the number and amount of unique gifts were given out. Both PBHA and Breakthrough took home major prizes.

Cambridge’s PBHA won the “most unique donors” grand prize of $25,000, with 379 supporters contributing $17,102 to the organization. PBHA also won one of the $2,000 “happy hour” prizes, awarded to the first 10 nonprofits to receive 50 unique gifts between 6:00 and 8:00 p.m. on October 10. Combining the amount raised from donors with the two prizes, PBHA raised a total of $44,102.

Breakthrough Greater Boston, also based in Cambridge, finished in 9th place in unique donors, after rising as high as 4th. With its 137 gifts, as well as a $2,000 “lunch time” prize similar to PBHA’s “happy hour” prize, Breakthrough Greater Boston netted close to $15,000.

The funds raised by PBHA will support more than 80 community-service programs led by 1,600 college students in the areas of adult services; advocacy, organizing, housing, and health; after-school and in-school; mentoring; and summer.

PBHA executive director Maria Dominguez Gray noted, “The breadth and support of the individual donors, from former teen participants to volunteer alumni, was overwhelming. The additional funding we were able to raise through this important community effort is especially important in light of recent government cuts to high-impact services, including PBHA’s Harvard Square and St. James homeless shelters as well as the Summer Urban Program.” PBHA’s student president Carolyn Chou confirmed, “This money will allow us not only to continue providing quality services but imagine an exciting future for PBHA. The dedication and support of our donors is a testament to the work we do, and it will allow us to keep going despite a tough financial environment for nonprofits.”

The impact on Breakthrough Greater Boston’s out-of-school time and teacher training programming will be equally great,  according to  Breakthrough’s executive director, Elissa Spelman.

“As we continue to work on bridging the education gap in Greater Boston, we rely on the generosity of our supporters. Placing 9th in the Giving Common Challenge is not only an honor for our organization but a testament to the dedication of the broader Breakthrough community that made our success over the past 36 hours possible,” she said.  “Breakthrough Greater Boston is in the midst of an exciting expansion from Cambridge into Boston, so the awareness and visibility of our organization within Boston’s philanthropic community couldn’t come at a better time. We extend our sincerest gratitude to all who supported us.”

According to the BGTB communique: For more than a century PBHA programs have provided vital experiences for generations of leaders in service and activism while developing real, meaningful community partnerships. PBHA strives to create change on multiple levels in Boston and Cambridge. For 20 years BTGB  has been working to transform urban education for students and teachers.. Through six years of intensive, tuition-free, out of school time programming, Breakthrough changes students’ academic trajectories and supports them along the path to four-year college. Simultaneously, BTGB builds the next generation of teachers through competitive recruitment, research-based training, and coaching from master teachers.

–Posted by Anita M. Harris
New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group, an award-winning public relations and online marketing  firm based in Cambridge, MA.

Sorry I couldn’t make it to this year’s Global  Cleantech Meetup but am pleased to post information provided  by Harold Simansky about his company, 360 Chestnut , which provides resources for consumers and service providers  in the home improvement market, and about WeFunder, a crowd investing platform for startups.

Both companies are headquartered at the Cambridge Innovation Center in Kendall Square, where I share space, although I have not yet met either Simansky or WeFunder cofounder and President Mike Norman.

Simansky says the two companies “stole the show,” but I’ll bet they got a run for their money (so to speak) from my friend and informal PR client,  Christine Adamow, who announced that her company, EuphorbUS,  which has produced pure fuel oil from tree seeds in Africa since 2007, is setting up shop in Hawaii. [Link to Euphorbus release.]

Simansky writes that WeFunder is the premier crowd investing platform for startups, while 360Chestnut is growing into one of the largest home improvement sites on the web.

Both startups were featured presenters at the  two day conference: Norman gave the keynote address to the more than 500 attendees and Simanski spoke on home improvement and sustainability.

Simansky points out that 360Chestnut is using the WeFunder  platform to raise its most recent round  of  investment, and in his  keynote, Norman called  360Chestnut an “ideal company” to use crowd investing to fund its growth.

Simansky describes WeFunder as “a crowd investing platform for startups.”  Using the platform, crowd investors can purchase stock for as little as $100 in promising new businesses around the country.  With the passage of the  US JOBS Act in April,  startups will soon be allowed to solicit investment from small, “unaccredited” investors and sell small stakes in their businesses online.

He says that  360Chestnut is “a no-cost, trusted source” where homeowners learn what to do to make their homes more healthy, energy-efficient and comfortable;  connect with qualified service providers, and access the more than 5000 rebate and incentives that will pay for this type of work.

For service providers, 360Chestnut is “a constant source of educated, nurtured customers; marketing & sales support; easy-to-use software and applications; online training; financing options and more.   Service providers pay to join and may purchase products and service son the site.

–Anita M. Harris

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group, an award-winning public relations and online-marketing firm based in Cambridge, MA.

        Later today, I hope to attend the Clean-Tech Meetup–an event which,  Gov. Deval Patrick, has said, “brings together innovative leaders from across the Commonwealth, the country and the globe to grow businesses, advance technologies and expand the adoption of clean energy sources.”

             As described on the Clean Tech Meetup Web site,  “through  Clean Energy Week and the Conference on Clean Energy in Boston,”  Massachusetts has been “steadily growing” a community of clean energy innovators and implementers.   “Now, we’re using what we’ve learned to bring you an event focusing on connecting people in intimate settings—instead of panels or keynotes.”

• Major Energy Consumers, Utilities, Leading Cleantech Companies, and other companies looking to form partnerships will meet providers of innovative clean energy services, products, and technologies.
• Investors will meet over 50 companies from more than 10 countries, hear from emerging clean energy companies, and talk with major energy users about their needs for clean energy technologies.
• Emerging Clean Energy Companies will talk with potential investors, strategic partners, and customers.

View the conference program.

Innovation Tour:  The conference also includes a tour of “cool companies and organizations” that will be holding open houses”from  Kendall Square to the Seaport Innovation District,” on Wednesday.  View the Tour participants.

I’m pleased that my friend and informal client, Christine Adamow, President and CEO of EuphorbUS,   announced today that her company, , a  “tree-based”  biofuel company that  has operated in East Africa since 2007,  will soon open its first operating site in North America in Hawaii.

The Meetup  is pricey, with registration $400+ for  participants and  $500-$1000 for presenters, who are selected by the conference organizations. (Might say I was surprised that the organizers called the event a meetup– because most “meetups” I’ve heard of are free or nearly so).   Held at the Boston Convention Center, it  runs through Wednesday.

—Anita M. Harris

Last Friday at the British Consulate in Cambridge, three innovators described emerging technologies that are changing how and where healthcare is delivered–and the challenges of bringing those  technologies to market.

Jacqueline Thong, CEO and Co-Founder of Ubiqi Health, in Boston,   is developing mobile tools to track and use data on patient compliance.  Bringing Ubiqui’s  first product–which measures the impact of life style changes on  migraine headache sufferers, to market–has been slow,  Thong said, but over the course of 18 months, her company  acquired 15 thousand users,  developed a reporting system, and assessed  results.  While, originally, her company had expected reports on impact to be shared only with providers, her team found that patients were interested in knowing their results–and that when provided access,  their compliance and positive outcomes increased.

Thong  emphasized the emphasized the importance of measuring impact and showcasing findings to potential partners.  Merck and the Joslin Diabetes Center are now interested in testing the device with their patients, as are other pharma companies, payor organizations interested in cutting costs, and physicians, Thong said.

Mira Sahney, General Manger, Gynecology Business at  Smith & Nephew  Endoscopy, is building a women’s health division at the company.  She is in the process of commercializing a minimally invasive surgical tool for use in doctors offices that removes fibroids and polyps which have long been a leading cause of  hysterectomies. While, in Europe, use of the minimally-invasive procedure (hysteroscopy) in doctors’ offices  is  encouraged and financially incentivized,  introducing it to the US market has been challenging, she said.

Medicare reimburses differently depending on the location but in any case, will not pay for the procedure if performed in the doctor’s office. Getting FDA approval for a new product can take years, she said. “You need promoters.” “What is more, the American College of Gynecology  is slow and conservative;  private insurers can  see and implement the benefits but are moving slowly.  Anyone seeking to market  a paradigm-shifting device must be  prepared to work at the “micro” level, she emphasized. “commercialization is completely different in every market.”

Peter Vicars, President and CEO of VGo Communications, in Nashua,  NH,  emphasized the importance of focus in introducing a new product. His company has developed a “telepresence robot” that can moved around a space to provide  video-like audiovisual information  — by someone at a computer many miles away.  Vgo robots can be used for security, advertising and in homes and schools, Vicars said.

For example, a child with immune deficiency could not go to school, but by sending a robot in his place, he could observe the goings on and interact with students and classmates.

Robots are being  used by families to communicate with patients in nursing homes–and are also  used by health providers to monitor patients.  For example,  at a children’s hospital found that they had a 50% readmission rate–not because the doctors had done anything wrong but because parents tended to panic and bring their kids back to the hospital in case of the slightest worry.  To cut back on expensive readmissions,  one of the doctor now sends a Vgo robot home with every patient. He can then see what’s going on, thus making a virtual house call.

The possibilities seem endless, Vicars said, but it’s crucial to focus in order to determine “is there an opportunity and can you capitalize on it?”

The program was developed and moderated  by Tanya Kanigan, Founder of  Proof of Market,  which helps engineering driven companies identify and develop opportunities for their technologies and services in life science and healthcare markets.

—Anita M. Harris

Governor Deval Patrick and Medicon Valley Officials after signing collaboration agreement at 2012 Bio International Convention on 6/20/12. Photo by Anita Harris, Harris Communications Group.

“It’s not about what we can give you or take; it’s about how we can share.” So said Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick before signing a collaboration agreement with officials from Medicon Valley MOU –located in the Capital Region of Denmark, Region Zealand in Denmark and Region Skåne in Sweden. The  agreement was one of two  partnerships signed today between Massachusetts and European regions. The second was with Catalonia, Spain.  Both  agreements were signed at the BIO International Convention.

“Our innovation economy is thriving here in Massachusetts and establishing and encouraging international partnerships is an important part of our future growth,” Governor Patrick said. “Catalonia and Medicon Valley are important regions in Europe’s innovation sector, and these partnerships will allow us to move forward on our mutual goals in this part of the global economy.”

The Medicon Valley memo of understanding (MOU) was signed by Governor Patrick and officials from the Capital Region of Denmark, Region Zealand in Denmark and Region Skåne in Sweden.

The agreement focuses on enhancing research partnerships in life sciences by an exchange of researchers and students; identifying special projects, partnerships or collaborations that can lead to new or enhanced research opportunities; and establishing a framework to be used in joint projects that could be financed by the European Union or National Institute of Health to develop new products and processes that can be used in the global market, according to a press release furnished by the governor’s office.

Medicon Valley is a bi-national region composed of the island of Zealand in eastern Denmark and the Skåne region of southern Sweden. It is home to over 200 companies in biotech, med-tech, and pharmaceuticals with over 350 additional companies in those fields having affiliate or branch offices in the region. These industries employ 40,000 people.

The MOU with Catalonia, Spain was signed by Governor Patrick and the President of Catalonia, Spain Artur Mas I Gavarro, with U.S. Ambassador to Spain Alan Solomont present for the signing. The Patrick-Murray Administration has partnered with the Catalan Government to put real collaboration into a renewed agreement on the 20^th anniversary of Lieutenant Governor Paul Cellucci signing a Declaration of Intent of Cooperation in 1992 between Massachusetts and Catalonia, according to the release.

The agreement facilitates collaboration in the following areas:

a)         Bilateral cooperation in research, and technological and industrial innovation;

b)         Business cooperation and economic development in key productive sectors, especially in life sciences, renewable energy, information technology, advanced manufacturing and infrastructure, and;

c)         Academic cooperation.

Catalonia has pursued a policy similar to Governor Patrick’s of investing in the innovation economy. Areas of convergence include the life sciences, mobile devices, clean energy technology, and advanced infrastructure. In 2011, Spain was Massachusetts’ 21st largest export partner, with Massachusetts exporting approximately $326.99 million worth of goods and services.

The BIO International Convention provides Governor Patrick, Lieutenant Governor Timothy Murray, state and industry leaders with an opportunity to showcase Massachusetts as a global leader in the life sciences industry, and the preeminent place for life sciences companies to invest in and expand. On Tuesday, Governor Patrick announced the first round of grants awarded under the Massachusetts-Israel Innovation Partnership (MIIP). MIIP is a formal collaboration between the State of Israel and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to encourage and support innovation and entrepreneurship between Massachusetts’ and Israel’s life sciences, clean energy and technology sectors. A total of at least $1.3 million is being awarded to four research & development (R&D) collaborations between Massachusetts and Israeli companies that have been jointly approved by the funding agencies on both sides. The total budget of the awarded projects is estimated at approximately $3 million. The Massachusetts awardees are located in Natick, Needham, North Billerica and Wilbraham.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Governor joined seven global biopharmaceutical companies to announce the formation of the Massachusetts Neuroscience Consortium. Participating companies include Abbott, Biogen Idec, EMD Serono, Janssen Research & Development, LLC, Merck, Pfizer and Sunovion Pharmaceuticals Inc. The Consortium will fund pre-clinical neuroscience at Massachusetts academic and research institutions.

Governor Patrick’s ten-year, $1 billion life sciences investment package has strengthened the state’s global leadership in the life sciences. The initiative melds all of the state’s key resources in order to spur research, investment, innovation and commercialization. Now the life sciences industry in Massachusetts is thriving, with more than 52 percent job growth in the biopharma sector since 2001 and more than 80,000 employees working in the life sciences.

–Anita M. Harris
New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group, an award-winning  public relations and marketing communications agency located in Cambridge, MA.

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