Scientists in Philanthropy’s Image: Private Foundations and the Fostering of Technoscientific Innovators

• In Event: Show me the money! Science and Technology in the Age of Mega-Philanthropy

Abstract

This talk explores the recent history of philanthropic efforts to make technoscientific innovators. That scientists and e­ngineers must become innovators and entrepreneurs to meet global challenges now structures science policy and “STEM” learning initiatives from kindergarten through advanced graduate training. Private philanthropic foundations played an important role in creating the aspirational images and ground-level practices of the contemporary scientific innovator. Beginning in the early 1990s, new foundations emerged in the United States to address what their billionaire donors described as a nation losing its “productive edge.” Among the most significant new philanthropic agents in this space was the Lemelson Foundation, created by the inventor Jerome Lemelson, which developed formal and informal innovation programs at all life-stages. Similarly, the Kauffman Foundation, initially oriented toward anti-drug initiatives, shifted its resources to the education and cultivation of entrepreneurs, particularly those from “disadvantaged” groups. These foundations partnered with governments, universities, corporations, museums, and other nonprofits to amplify the significance of innovation in American life. They championed inventiveness and risk-taking as moral virtues, but also visions of socio-technical innovators working for the global good. The programs they funded instilled norms, skills, and career trajectories for broadening STEM­ participation in a globalized market economy. Chronicling the growth and evolution of these programs reveals how private foundations shape not only which scientific problems receive support, but also the qualities of the people that philanthropists imagine can solve them.

Author

• Matthew Wisnioski, Virginia Tech