Partnerships
for the Future
Just
as land, then capital, defined wealth in past centuries,
knowledge - primarily technological knowledge - will be the currency of
the 21st century.
At MIT, the Center for Technology,
Policy, and Industrial Development (CTPID) is building productive partnerships
to make best use of this new currency. CTPID partnerships between academia,
government, and industry support global economic growth and advance policies
that preserve the environment and benefit society at large.
CTPID’s global mission
is to develop new knowledge, advanced technological strategies, and innovative
partnerships that address industrial and policy issues. At MIT, CTPID
provides an enriched environment for faculty and students to pursue their
intellectual interests.
CTPID research focuses on contemporary
industrial problems-such as how to build safe, affordable, and environmentally
friendly automobiles-that span social, natural, and technological interests.
To construct knowledge about
these problems, CTPID provides an interdisciplinary home for world class
researchers who are intrigued by the complex issues facing contemporary
industry and policy makers.
Drawing on the core competencies
of engineering, management, and the social sciences, CTPID’s 160
faculty, researchers, graduate students, and staff are supported by $9
million a year in research funding from over 100 sponsors for work in
these sectors:
- Aerospace
- Automotive
- Business and environment
- Materials systems
- Mobility
- Telecommunications
- Technology and law
New programs examine particular
issues facing a single global corporation.
Forging
Industry-Government Partnerships
Established in 1985, CTPID
extends MIT’s pioneering role as one of the first universities to
involve industry and government actively in research partnerships.
CTPID partnerships begin with
the genuine concerns of each stakeholder group-industry’s need to
grow efficiently and government’s commitment to public well-being.
These intellectual partnerships, forged in an interdisciplinary arena,
encourage stakeholders to address technological development in a societal
and environmental context.
Applying MIT’s intellectual
competencies to real world dilemmas creates educational benefits as well.
Students involved in CTPID research programs and those enrolled in the
associated master’s and Ph.D. programs learn to solve the authentic
problems facing industry and society.
This combination of interdisciplinary
academic resources and partnerships with both regulatory bodies and entrepreneurial
enterprises defines CTPID’s role as a home for advanced research
with practical applications.
Generating
New Knowledge
CTPID provides a global home
for eight major programs and other associated projects undertaken by faculty
and researchers at MIT’s schools of engineering, management, and
humanities and social sciences. Affiliated scholars come from universities
including Harvard, Chicago, Tokyo, and Paris XII.
Pragmatic knowledge comes from
over 100 sponsors ranging from Japan’s Toyota Motor Corporation to
General Motors Corporation, from Finland’s Nokia Corporation to Sprint
Corporation, from Electricité de France to the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, and from the Raytheon Company to the U.S. Air Force.
New intellectual tools are
arising from this alliance of disciplines, corporations, and governmental
agencies.
- Social science perspectives
contribute approaches to understanding national and global policy formulation,
the sociocultural consequences of international accords, and the macro
and microeconomic impact of trade policies.
- The management methodologies
of organizational theory, supply chain management, and corporate finance
suggest strategies for the implementation of technological solutions.
- Engineering knowledge of
product design and complex manufacturing processes help set realistic
expectations for the capacities of physical systems. Interdisciplinary
teams, working with corporate and governmental partners, can provide
original approaches to policy formulation, environmentally sound systems
design, and lean manufacturing processes.
CTPID is home to two interdisciplinary
graduate programs that enroll over 120 students each year:
- The Technology and Policy
Program, a master of science program trains students in a
technical field and an applied social science, and The Technology,
Management, and Policy doctoral program.
CTPID’s research and educational
programs are part of MIT’s Engineering Systems Division, which unites
four research centers and five degree programs including Systems Design
and Management and Leaders for Manufacturing. This association will strengthen
CTPID as a hub for interdisciplinary, collaborative research.
Solving
Complex Societal Problems
As industrial development has
accelerated in recent decades, so has the potential for conflict between
social, natural, and technological systems, especially when human interventions
respond to the needs of a single system. CTPID research focuses on industrial
issues at the intersection of these systems.
- The social system,
through individual consumer choices and government action, creates demand
for products and services and also the rules by which industry can meet
those demands.
- The natural system
seeks to balance essential plant, animal, and environmental relationships
while humankind extracts raw materials from the Earth and deposits waste.
- The technological system
offers benefits ranging from instant global communication to affordable
transportation, but also carries costs such as job loss and polluted
air.
Today society and business increasingly
understand that economic growth must be balanced with environmental health.
Thus industrial enterprises require a continually evolving set of incentives
and regulations to thrive economically, to meet demands for goods, and to
create sustainable relationships with the environment and local cultures.
Synergies
at MIT
MIT has long demonstrated leadership
in enlisting business and government in vital support for research. As
a world leader in engineering, science, management, and the social sciences,
MIT’s perspective on current and future technological development
and its impact is unparalleled.
When corporations and governments
come to CTPID, they find world class researchers and resources committed
to the impartial investigation of contemporary issues. The faculty, researchers,
and graduate students who engage in core industry issues at CTPID will
contribute knowledge that will drive industrial development in the 21st
century.
CTPID’s purpose is
bold: to examine fundamental issues that will shape the future of
society and industry; to establish continuous partnerships that do more
than solve immediate problems; and to build collaborative relationships
devoted to sustainable industrial productivity and competitiveness.
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