by Wendy Torrence
Director Global Scholars Program
Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation

Famed American inventor, entrepreneur, and statesman Benjamin Franklin perpetually sought ways to improve technology and the lives of all people through careful observation, the sharing of ideas across disciplines, and the application of lessons and practices from one country to another. His myriad contributions to science, philosophy, business, and journalism, as well as his abiding interest in the development of a new American nation, seem to be driven by a belief that cooperation and the sharing of ideas would promote the best possible results.

The same belief motivates the newly created Global Scholars Program at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. Devoted to the process of sharing knowledge about innovation, entrepreneurship, and the development of economic opportunity, the Kauffman Foundation views this program as an invaluable chance to exchange ideas in an international context. Benjamin Franklin was intent on studying the scientific, business, and manufacturing knowledge and practices of his host countries, England and France, in the eighteenth century. The cross-fertilization Franklin facilitated was invaluable in pressing the frontiers of knowledge forward in all of these areas. Similarly, the Kauffman Foundation is eager to foster conversations between students, scholars, and practitioners from abroad and those actively involved in entrepreneurship in the United States. These conversations will form the cornerstone of an important transnational dialogue that will generate benefits for all who participate.

Global interdependence is hardly a new idea, nor is the importance of an international perspective. It is scarcely possible to conduct business without regard for world events. People, information, products, and ideas flow across borders at an unprecedented rate. The laptop computer on which this essay was written is the product of many countries; engineered in the United States and assembled in China from component parts made in Taiwan (screen) and California (microprocessor), it runs on an operating system coded in India—and is used worldwide. In the May/June 2006 issue of Foreign Affairs, IBM Chief Executive Officer Samuel Palmisano argues that the "globally integrated enterprise," created in response to globalization and new technology, represents a new form of the multinational corporation. This new corporate form, he suggests, has the potential to transform approaches to trade, commerce, education, and politics.

Participants in the global market must have an understanding of the various resources, cultures, and practices that characterize the countries in which and with which they do business. Today's entrepreneurial ventures must be "born global," to borrow a phrase from Harvard Business School's Daniel Isenberg. In such an internationally integrated environment it is essential that countries seek to educate global citizens whose vision, knowledge, and reach extends beyond their own national boundaries. Moreover, inspiration for innovation often comes from viewing the world from new angles. Such new perspectives, as Benjamin Franklin and his associates discovered, can uncover novel ways to organize knowledge, provide solutions, and create dynamics that lead to surprising and innovative outcomes. We must create mechanisms to facilitate transnational conversations and observations that will enhance the conduct of global affairs.

The United Kingdom's Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, hopes for a future in which young entrepreneurs are well positioned to take part in global enterprise. In a November 2005 Financial Times comment articulating a vision for a student program that would enrich his country's entrepreneurial aspirations and talent, Chancellor Brown noted that "in the coming years I want to see an even stronger spirit of entrepreneurship in our country: young people challenged to do better." Brown's initiative created the National Council of Graduate Entrepreneurship (NCGE)–Kauffman Entrepreneurship Fellowship. Funded by the UK government, the Fellowship provides a world-class opportunity for students to examine, understand, and experience entrepreneurial culture in the United States.

In 2007, under the auspices of its new Global Scholars Program, the Kauffman Foundation is hosting the aspiring entrepreneurs selected for this Fellowship. Welcoming the participants for a six-month immersion in U.S. entrepreneurial culture, the Kauffman Foundation will create opportunities for them to meet and engage with leading global entrepreneurs as well as scholars, policy leaders, innovative researchers, and business founders. Building on their strong backgrounds in science, technology, and engineering, the participants will have the opportunity to further develop their skills with a view to turning their expertise in the direction of entrepreneurship and the creation of innovative businesses. They will enhance their understanding of the American culture of entrepreneurship through observation, conversation, and participation with those who have successfully advanced new and influential ideas.

Conversely, those who engage with our Global Scholars will themselves have a unique and rich opportunity to experience new perspectives and to understand the views of young entrepreneurs and future business leaders from another country. We hope they will be inspired by these Fellowship recipients who possess entrepreneurial spirit and incredible dedication to bringing innovative and thoughtful ideas to bear on medical technology, energy conservation, environmental protection, computer and digital processing, communication, and gaps in the market. The program will afford the Kauffman Foundation an invaluable opportunity to exchange information, share resources and ideas, and expose American students, scholars, and practitioners to innovative ideas from the birthplace of the modern industrial economy.

Benjamin Franklin's lessons from centuries ago can undoubtedly guide us as we seek to create entrepreneurs who are prepared for a global economy and who are prepared to further the creation of new and innovative enterprises worldwide. The Global Scholars Program provides us with an opportunity to peer across borders, share our knowledge, and draw in lessons that may transform our own perspectives. We are looking forward to this journey.