Massachusetts is at a crossroads. With few natural resources, very limited agriculture, and a once-thriving manufacturing sector that has now largely moved elsewhere, the Commonwealth has only one asset with which to secure its future: its capacity for innovation.

It is a powerful asset. Massachusetts has long been known for its leadership in education, research and development, and biomedical science. We have a highly educated workforce, access to capital, and an impressive information infrastructure. We can boast the highest concentration of Ph.D.s in the world, and among the highest per capita research expenditures in the country. In many ways Massachusetts is truly America’s “State of Mind.”

With these advantages Massachusetts should be poised for leadership in the new economy, where innovation and enterprise are the criteria for success. And with that economic success should come opportunity for our people: to have access to the more challenging, higher-paying careers the new economy offers; to take advantage of the quality of life that a prosperous and forward-looking state can offer; and to be able to stay and succeed right here at home.

This is the future we would like to count on. But it is a future increasingly in peril. Massachusetts is losing its position of leadership for two reasons:

First, other states, recognizing how high the stakes are, have moved aggressively to beat us at our own game.