The Frontier State of Life Sciences

In November 2023, we launched The Frontier State Conversations series, where we host trailblazers across public policy, venture capital, and disruptive technologies. We aim to unpack competing ideas of fostering innovation, as seen across the private, public, non-profit, and academic spheres.In this edition of The Frontier State series, we - in tandem with The Business & Government Professional Interest Council at Harvard Kennedy School - hosted Travis McCready, Head of Life Sciences - Americas at JLL and Ex-CEO of Massachusetts Life Sciences Center to discuss The Frontier State of Life Sciences & ClimateTech. We aimed to highlight the MLSC’s and the State’s focus on spearheading biotech innovation and on replicating the life sciences miracle in ClimateTech.The event hosted a select live audience of students from Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard Business School, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, among other graduate and undergraduate schools at Harvard, MIT, and more.Travis McCready’s brief bio is below:Experience:Travis McCready is the head of life sciences markets in the Americas for JLL and chair of the JLL Global Life Sciences Advisory Board. In this capacity, he leads a multi-country platform that includes brokerage, capital markets, project management, consulting & advisory, and valuation services for life sciences companies, developers, and investors. He also co-leads the firm’s Innovation Districts Practice, helping plan, build and finance innovation districts all over North America. Travis has over 25 years of experience leading public, private, and non-profit ventures with a focus on technology and innovation-based economic development. The former President & CEO of the $1.6 billion life sciences funding agency Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, Travis is passionate about supporting tech-based entrepreneurship. He is a frequent speaker on the evolving role of technology-based economic development at the community and regional levels. He remains active in the life sciences community serving on the boards of the global business accelerator MassChallenge, the global life sciences business enabler Nucleate, and Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston. He also serves in advisory capacities at Harvard University, MIT, and Johns Hopkins University. No stranger to public service, Travis has served on the Economic Development Planning Council under three Massachusetts governors, and has been appointed to state and national initiatives ranging from the arts to advanced manufacturing.Education and affiliations:Travis received his B.A. in Philosophy from Yale University, and J.D. from the University of Iowa.In consequent posts, we will post about our key insights from this conversation - mainly as it pertains to innovation and fostering a disruptive technology ecosystem across Biotech, Climate-Tech, and Tough Tech.Stay tuned for more such full video uploads of The Frontier State Conversations series throughout Spring 2024! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thefrontierstate.substack.com/subscribe