Long Island Hopes New Moves Spark Technology Start-Ups
Efforts Are Under Way to Encourage Technology Start-Ups
“We have a government structure that is not set up to solve regional problems,” said Nancy Rauch Douzinas, president of the Rauch Foundation, a nonprofit organization that studies the island's economy. She is also on the board of Accelerate Long Island. “When you take everything down to such a small level, it fosters local thinking and undermines any ability to get bigger entities.”
Experts have also said Long Island must stop hemorrhaging young people and develop communities where they want to live.
Ms. Rauch Douzinas said she saw promise in Accelerate Long Island's efforts to unite the region around an economic strategy.
“Nobody’s going to quite become Silicon Valley, but I think it's realistic that innovation can drive the Long Island economy,” she said. “It requires leadership, it requires, I think, people understanding the bigger picture, collaboration.”
Accelerate Long Island, which formed last year, has identified about 110 technology startups on the island and is helping connect them to investors, mentors, accountants and lawyers.