Franco-American Cooperation, Source: TBD
Alliances between France and the U.S. are certainly not new. The American Revolution was funded in large part by loans from France. Our purchase of the “Louisiana Territory” from France doubled the size of our country. And, the U.S. Declaration of Independence from Britain’s Crown helped catalyze the French Revolt against their monarchy. However, the recent visitation of French academics, technocrats, corporate decision-makers and government officials representing the French “Aerospace Valley” to California, was something out of the ordinary.
France, like other members of the EU, has been watching California’s Silicon Valley and the State’s major aerospace economy closely. About 50% (40% per capita) of the U.S. national venture capital is invested in California's high-tech clusters and a key cluster sector, the California space industry, forms 25% of the entire global market. The French government recently established several regional economic development clusters of their own, one being the Aerospace Valley in SE France running from Bordeaux to Toulouse. The area includes a wide range of enterprises, government R&D facilities, universities and research institutes broadly related to aerospace and often-associated “green technologies”. The French are leaders in appreciating the synergism between space and green technologies and they came to California prepared to discuss potential collaboration in both areas.
To arrange the delegation’s grand tour of the State, the French Embassy contacted the California Space Authority (CSA), a non-profit space industry membership and advocacy organization with offices in Sacramento, Santa Maria and Pasadena. The CSA arranged visits to the Governor’s Office in Sacramento, an invitee-only meeting at the French Residence in San Francisco, the NASA Ames Research Center, selected Silicon Valley contacts, business and university groups in the Bay Area, Los Angeles, Pasadena (JPL) and more.
A CSA press release of the “Tour” provides detail on the people, places, discussions and agreements. In brief, the Ambassador, Jean-Daniel Tordjman, lead for the International Promotion of the Competitive Clusters within the French Ministry of Economy, Industry, and Employment, indicated that they had the full support of the French Embassy and the French Ambassador. He stated that “they are ready to enter into an ambitious partnership with…California, the CSA and its members”. He concluded that “the interest in creating aerospace jobs and educating our youth in the field of aerospace are two issues that bind us together.” By the end of tour the two sides identified mutual interests in “the creation of a student summer internship program,…a science-researcher exchange program, and a reciprocal delegation visit in June 2009 of California officials including the Governor, CSA and aerospace executives to France and its Aerospace Valley…”. Andrea Seastrand, Executive Director of the CSA, noted that “in the midst of alarming global economic stresses, these…networking sessions will lay the groundwork for reinforced partnerships between the Aerospace Valley of France and what we call the “California Innovation Corridor”.
I was invited to the San Francisco fete and a follow-on open house in Palo Alto hosted by the new U.S. branch of a French Aerospace Valley company called ANewWorld-Consulting. They are focused on US-French business collaboration development in space and green technologies. On March 19, 2009 they coordinated and staffed this event, in collaboration with the San Francisco-based French Chamber of Commerce, as part of their Aerospace Meets Green Tech Evening Series, called “Green Technologies and Aerospace Convergence: The European Example”. The program focused on an industry panel of French and German CEOs moderated by a consulting partner in ANewWorld-Consulting. A report was distributed, informally referred to as the “French Plan” but titled, “The Grenelle Environment: Summary Report on Round Table Discussions held at the Hotel de Roquelaure on 24-26, October, 2007”. The French Plan is based on a European and International strategy for addressing climate change, protecting the environment, promoting economic growth, and developing ecologically-responsible democracy.
As is generally the case for global government-related business collaborations there will need to be fair brokers on both the French and California sides to facilitate communications, coordination and cooperation and perhaps development of public-private partnerships. The CSA is in a good position to support that across California. The Aerospace Valley group, perhaps with the support of ANewWorld-Consulting based in both Toulouse and Palo Alto, could also be of significant help. Tracking this proposed broad collaboration and its results will be important for emerging space commerce enterprises in both countries since knowledge sharing, resource leveraging and partnerships will be essential for effective progress. The Commercial Space Gateway can also provide oversight on this promising space commerce collaboration.
What's your take on the possibilities and potential benefits of such an international cluster collaboration? Is there work to be done first, perhaps especially in California, to develop stronger regional clusters in space commerce ventures? What is the view of current and/or potential investors in the California vs the French vs the combined collaboration venture? Can significant benefit be gained in non-competitive technology areas, perhaps especially those that require local labor and expertise so job competition is minimal, and therefore collaboration is mutually beneficial? Please share your thoughts on this fascinating opportunity for space commercial development with Earth applications.
Comments
Vive la Difference, Too!
From: Richard Mains, 05/06/09
Well, we know where Krukin stands on free enterprise and the EC VP's views on "personal spaceflight"! I generally agree with Krukin here, but having worked with ESA and CNES on several collaborative space research projects, I tend to see pluses along with the minuses in the close (socialist-leaning?) collaboration between government and industry in large, risky projects such as those in space commerce. In my view, one plus is a general tendency to have a more stable project environment over time, not the annual "reinvention" that can go on in the USA. What's interesting to me is that in the last few months, Astrium has "recommited":http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2009/04/03/324809/astrium-we-are-committed-to-space-jet.html to its "Space Jet":http://spatioportfrance.free.fr/docs/SpaceTourism-12mars08/RaesTls-3AF-HuguesLaporteWeywada-12mars08.ppt, as they call it. And their funding is projected to be almost all from the private sector (investors plus business partners). The recent and very welcome "French Tour" of California's aerospace, space and greenspace entities was driven mostly by the same entrepreneurial motivations that are thriving in the USA. The French, as those of us who have been fortunate in experiencing this within France, have a special way of "doing business". They seem to have mastered (invented?) the art of conducting joint collaborations with determination and diplomacy, while also truly enjoying the social aspects that always accompany, but often don't directly mix with, these endeavors. Hopefully "doing lunch" has not yet become a common French phrase.
Vive la France... if it can just escape the European Commission!
From: Jeff Krukin, 05/05/09
I'm delighted to read about this innovation connection, and perhaps as a result of their visit our French friends will educate the appropriate EC ministers about the value of entrepreneurs and power of raw capitalism. During the press event at the Google Lunar X PRIZE Team Summit held May 20-21, 2008 at the International Space University in Strasbourg, France, a journalist commented on the prevalence of American teams and asked, "Where are the European teams?" A European Commissioner provided one very powerful answer to that question. On page 3 (News Briefs) of the June 13 issue of Space News, you will find "Astrium Space Plane Fails To Draw Interest." When Astrium had announced their plans I found nobody who believed their vehicle would ever fly, primarily because of Astrium's projected cost to develop the vehicle (app. US$1.5B). Not surprising, since Astrium's overhead costs are more like those of Boeing than SpaceX Corp. Astrium's failure to secure broad support also isn't surprising for a different reason; the lackluster interest of European politicians (and therefore society) in manned space exploration (and, by extension, human spaceflight). Beyond the issues raised above, the views expressed by EC Vice President Guenter Verheugen speak volumes about the attitudes of the European political establishment toward entrepreneurial space activity (NewSpace). Referring to public remarks by Guenter, Astrium Chief Executive Francois Auque said, "I was even told that this project was morally blameworthy because it targets an audience of the rich people." How stunningly stultified and non-visionary! Perhaps Mr. Verheugen doesn't recall that the first VCR's and DVD players cost over $1000, or that the first cell phones were quite expensive, or that the first years of train and airline service were not exactly affordable by the masses. Perhaps he doesn't understand that it is this "audience of rich people" that provide the first market for so many new products and services, and thus the revenue stream that supports further product development, competition, and lower prices. Or, perhaps he does know all this yet still has some vague negative feelings about wealthy people. I don't know, having never met the man (I would welcome a conversation). What I do know is that his comments are absolutely absurd when you consider his title: European Commissioner for Enterprise and Industry. How can he be responsible for growing European enterprise and industry and yet be so cavalier about two primary drivers of economic growth; an emerging industry and wealthy consumers? Perhaps it's because his career of more than three decades has been one of political rather than business experience. All in all, another indication that government will not be the primary driver of space transportation, exploration, settlement and development. If I may suggest to the CSA, please invite Mr. Verheugen for the next event. Educating European leaders who maintain views such as his, which no doubt have been reinforced by current economic events for those with pro-socialist, anti-capitalism sentiments, is vital if the international cluster collaboration that Mains writes about is going to expand.
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