INNOVATION and HUMAN CAPITAL in the PALOUSE KNOWLEDGE CORRIDOR

The Palouse Knowledge Corridor (PKC), crossing the Idaho-Washington border and comprising Latah and Whitman counties, expects to add over 1,000 residents in the next 5 years, pushing the population well over 75,000 by 2012. Workforce-aged inhabitants between the ages of 20 and 64 make up 65% of the total population.

The University of Idaho and Washington State University’s location eight miles apart in these two counties make for a high demonstrable concentration of knowledge and innovation as indicated by patent generation. The Palouse Knowledge Corridor consistently generates more patents per 1000 people than the nation (see right).

The region also shows an especially high concentration of educated residents as indicated by educational attainment data for 2006 (below). Twenty-one percent of residents 25+ hold a graduate degree compared to ten percent at the state and national level.

Further, both universities show completions of key degrees in either innovative, high-tech, or regionally relevant programs. The 2006-2007 program year saw 1185 degree completions within the Business Management & Marketing major, 647 within Engineering, 393 within Biological and Biomedical Sciences, 267 in Agriculture & Agriculture Operations, and 102 within Computer & Information Sciences. The following graph demonstrates graduates by program and award level.

SOURCE: Data and Analysis by EMSI (www.economicmodeling.com)

For more information, please contact the Latah Economic Development Council (LEDC) or the Southeast Washington Economic Development Association (SEWEDA).