RTP Visits Benelux: Oct. 7-11, 2019

Research Triangle Region

From Monday Oct. 7 through Friday Oct. 11, the head of the Research Triangle Regional Partnership will visit Belgium and The Netherlands to research potential academic and business collaborations.

The visit is an opportunity to explore mutual opportunities in the Triangle’s particularly strong sectors of AgTech, Life Sciences, CleanTech, Advanced Manufacturing and Technology.

In particular, the trip is an opportunity for Research Triangle to make connections for its burgeoning AgTech sector. In May, 2019 the Partnership’s State of the Region meeting emphasized the growth of the area as an AgTech center.

To read more about the focus and goals of Research Triangle’s AgTech sector, click here.

Connect with Opportunity in The Research Triangle

Research Triangle Regional Partnership

Ryan Combs, Exec. Director

Ryan Combs, executive director of the Research Triangle Regional Partnership, works closely with economic development organizations in each of the Research Triangle’s 10 member counties to market the competitive advantages of the Research Triangle Region. He has led the partnership since 2017 and previously worked for the state Department of Transportation and NC Sens. Elizabeth Dole and Richard Burr.

Start-Up Culture

In 2018, 159 deals were done in the Triangle worth $2.5 billion indicating the health of young companies. For example in the AgTech sector specifically, the major presence of Life Science companies, Contract Research Organizations, and  “Big Ag” has driven strong growth. Alexandria Real Estate recently opened the doors to their new AgTech incubator Launch Labs, which is already at 100% capacity. The region has more than 200 AgTech companies in the plant tech and animal tech space, and there are more than 15 different funding streams to access capital in the region.

Knowledge Workers

The Triangle Region is home to three Tier-1 research universities –  North Carolina State University in Raleigh, Duke University in Durham and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill – and was ranked by Forbes as the second most educated city in the country. These universities help attract nearly $3 billion in federal R&D funding each year and have spun off hundreds of start-up companies. Forty-nine percent of the area’s urban residents have a bachelor’s degree and Research Triangle also has one of the highest concentrations of PhD’s in the country, making it one of the highest educated regions in the United States.

Building Global Partnerships

The Research Triangle Regional Partnership is interested in expanding its network globally which will allow for future collaboration and partnership opportunities.  NC State in 2018 created a collaborative partnership with VIB in Ghent, the most recent of its 175 collaborations with international institutions, involving almost 200 faculty members.

The Research Triangle Ecosystem

North Carolina

Ten million people now call North Carolina home, making it the ninth most populated state in the U.S. Strategically located on the East Coast, North Carolina is half way between New York and Miami. The state’s economy was built on Agriculture, Furniture, and Textiles. And today, Agriculture remains the state’s #1 industry, contributing over $90 billion last year to the NC economy. But industries such as biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, information technology, financial services and aerospace now also have important positions in the state’s growth.

The Research Triangle Region

The Research Triangle Region is comprised of 10 counties, two million residents, 10 college and universities, seven community colleges, 176,000 annual students and 46,000 annual graduates. Three Tier-1 research universities are located in the Triangle Region: Duke University, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and North Carolina State University. These universities help attract nearly $3 billion in federal R&D funding each year and have spun off hundreds of start-up companies. Forty-nine percent of the area’s urban residents have a bachelor’s degree and Research Triangle also has one of the highest concentrations of PhD’s in the country, making it one of the highest educated regions in the United States. Click here for a more comprehensive report on the region.

The Research Triangle Park

At the epicenter of the Research Triangle Region sits the Research Triangle Park (RTP.) Created in 1959, RTP is the largest and one of the most prominent research parks in the United States. 55,000 employees and more than 250 companies, government agencies, and non-profits call the RTP home, including Cisco Systems, IBM, IQVIA, The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the Environmental Protection Agency. BASF, Bayer Crop Sciences and Syngenta employ more than 1,000 employees in the region, and international companies including Novozymes have their North American headquarters nearby. The RTP was strategically situated between the three Tier-1 research universities and many graduates from these universities go on to work in the RTP.