Ken Jarboe at the Athena Alliance has an interesting post titled Michigan Gets It that points in turn to a Business Week interview with Michigan's governor. From the interview:

The bottom line for why design is important to the State of Michigan — especially a state that has been challenged by a global economy where we see manufacturing jobs leave — is because future growth will be based more and more on the creative work that goes into making great products, or developing great cities, or even providing great customer service.

Read Michigan Governor Talks Design from Business Week

From the Athena Alliance web site:

Athena Alliance is in the vanguard of identifying, understanding, analyzing, and educating on the information, intangibles, and innovation (I3 or I-Cubed) economy. Information, knowledge and other intangibles now drive economic prosperity and wealth creation. The economic rules have changed; public policy has not caught up. Policy makers are grappling with the urgent need to frame policy questions in light of the changing economic situation. Athena Alliance helps close that gap through activities to reshape the debate and craft new solutions.

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