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Abstract:
International Initiatives, Technology and More will Strengthen Economic Development in Nanotech Industry Sector

Opportunity Houston to Expand Houston Region's Global Nanotech Footprint

HOUSTON, TX | Posted on December 12th, 2006

The Greater Houston Partnership unveiled a historic fundraising effort aimed in part at building greater awareness of the region's business advantages to the nanotechnology sector.

Opportunity HoustonSM, chaired by Houston Astros' owner Drayton McLane, is designed to expand the region's global reach through enhanced international initiatives and leveraging technology to target foreign and domestic companies for relocation and expansion in the 10-county region.

McLane said that as the birthplace of nanotechnology, Houston has the resources - academic, research, scientific, and intellectual - that are essential to the sector, and the collaborative spirit necessary to optimize its commercial potential.

Rice University houses The Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology and the Center for Biological and Environmental Nanotechnology. Five major research institutions in the Texas Medical Center have formed the Alliance for NanoHealth, the world's first joint effort to bridge the gaps between medicine, biology, materials sciences, public policy, and nanotechnology. And Houston is the destination of two of the three Nobel Prizes awarded in the discipline.

"By any measure, we are the nation's top region for nanotechnology," McLane added. "Our colleges and universities have led the world in nanotech breakthroughs, and our healthcare community is leading the world in finding applications that can help advance the science of medicine and patient care and treatment."

"We understand the value of nanotechnology here, and we are committed to supporting the companies, institutions, researchers, and scientists who are its pioneers."

Opportunity HoustonSM is a $40 million aggressive marketing campaign that will support the Partnership's strategic plan to help create 600,000 new jobs, attract $60 billion in capital investment, and generate $225 billion in foreign trade.

Included among the possible programs Opportunity HoustonSM would fund are:

• Development of a Geographic Information System (GIS), an advanced technology that can capture data according to location and link prospects with specific sites throughout the 10-county region that best meet their requirements.

• Lead-generation methodology that will enable the Partnership to identify and aggressively pursue the strongest potential prospects in key growth sectors.

• Enhanced international outreach that includes trade missions similar to those taken earlier this year to India and China.

• Marketing efforts and public relations designed to impact domestic and international perceptions of the Houston region.

Taken together, McLane said, these and other activities will enable the region to make a powerful case for growth and development - not just in the nanotechnology field but in other sectors as well.

"We have what companies need: a low cost of doing business, a strong pro-business environment, a great partnership with local governments, a skilled workforce - pretty much anything anyone could ask for," he continued.

"All we have to do is get the word out, and that is exactly what Opportunity HoustonSM is designed to do."

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About Vollmer Public Relations
The Greater Houston Partnership is the primary advocate of the Houston business community and is dedicated to building regional economic prosperity. It represents 10 counties: Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, San Jacinto, and Waller.

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