It is my pleasure to tell you about the Arizona Innovation Awards, a program designed to honor the many individuals, businesses, school initiatives and government projects that are moving innovation to the next level by taking good ideas and turning them into reality. The work of these innovators is making it possible for Arizona to compete in the 21st century economy.
The first Arizona Innovation Award was presented to Professor Mark Riley from The University of Arizona in Tucson for his development of an ethylene-gas detection sticker that "knows" when produce is ripe. The RediRipe sticker changes from white to blue when fruit (apples, pears, peaches and others) turns ripe. Farmers and grocers will no longer have to rely on how fruit looks to determine whether it's ripe; the sticker will show them. It has the potential to save millions in lost crops.
Just this week, I presented an Arizona Innovation Award to Provista Life Sciences, LLC, a Phoenix-based company that oversees medical diagnostics projects. Provista is a prime example of innovation: they take new diagnostic technologies that show promise at the University and research level, procure further testing and trials, then shepherd the successful ones through the government and legal process so they can be brought to market. The company is currently overseeing several diagnostic blood tests: one that can detect breast cancer, one that can detect estrogen-related cancers early on, and a test that can identify Alzheimer's Disease. These blood tests are major breakthroughs. Early detection gives doctors and families more treatment options and can prolong a patient's quality of life.
Provista and Professor Riley are just two examples of innovation in Arizona. There are many others: schools that are concentrating on science, technology, engineering and math to better prepare our students for the future, scientists who are brining new cures from the lab to the marketplace, and entrepreneurs who are turning ideas into inventions. There are innovators all around us. To nominate someone for an Arizona Innovation Award, visit www.azcommerce.com.
As always, if you have any questions or comments, please contact my office at
1-800-253-0883 and ask to speak to Constituent Services.
