Governor Tim Pawlenty will travel to Phoenix, Arizona on Monday for his first official function serving as both Vice Chair of the National Governors Association (NGA) and Chair of the NGA Center for Best Practices. Pawlenty will join educators, business leaders and other governors to officially kick off the Innovation America initiative, for which Governor Pawlenty serves as Co-Chair along with and NGA Chair Arizona, Governor Janet Napolitano.

The Innovation America initiative is a year-long effort to strengthen the economic competitiveness of the United States by improving the country’s capacity for innovation. The goals of the initiative will focus on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education in grades K-12; the role of postsecondary institutions as engines of regional innovation; and the kinds of state economic development policies that best promote business innovation.

“Working with the NGA Center for Best Practices, the Innovation America task force will take the lead in developing strategies that drive innovation,” Governor Pawlenty said. “The work of this task force will be critical to ensuring every state is equipped to excel in the global economy.”

Utilizing the expertise of the Innovation America task force and the comprehensive resources available through the NGA Center for Best Practices, the initiative aims to provide all governors with the tools needed to develop and implement strategies to enhance the innovative capacity of their states.

Joining Governors Pawlenty and Napolitano on the Innovation America task force are Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius, Missouri Governor Matt Blunt, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, Utah Governor Jon Huntsman and business and academic leaders who will be announced on Tuesday.

As Chair of the NGA Center for Best Practices, Governor Pawlenty now leads the nation’s only dedicated consulting firm for governors and their key policy staff. The Center’s mission is to develop and implement innovative solutions to public policy challenges. To do this, the Center tracks, evaluates, and disseminates information on state innovations and best practices through methods such as cataloging innovative programs and sharing this information via reports, briefs, and a variety of online materials, as well as hosting seminars, academies, and workshops across the country to allow state executives to share ideas and experiences.

Over a two day period at the meeting in Arizona, participants will take part in discussions designed to identify challenges and determine the most promising strategies, policies and programs to help governors begin developing a strategy for their own states. State teams will learn from the experiences of policy makers and the private sector in developing effective approaches and tactics and begin framing an action plan for creating an “innovative environment” in each state.