Virginia Economic Review

This issue of Virginia Economic Review details the things that represent Virginia and its influence on America’s governance, economy, culture, and norms. Highlights include an A to Z listing of those items and illustrative compendiums of famous Virginians and companies located in the Commonwealth.

Jonathan Zur is president and CEO of the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities (VCIC), a nonprofit organization based in the Richmond area that works with schools, businesses, and communities to promote inclusion.

Virginia has been indispensable since the beginning of its existence. In addition to eight U.S. presidents, the Commonwealth was home to numerous Founding Fathers who helped shape the direction of the country and many civil rights leaders who believed it was capable of more.

Medical Device Manufacturer Embody Sets Stage for International Growth For Norfolk-based Embody, Inc., the six-year process of product development, preclinical testing, and compliance hurdles to get its collagen-based tendon and ligament implant, Tapestry, into the U.S.

Partnership With JMU, BRCC Helps Merck Fill Need for HPV Vaccines In 2019, Melissa Lubin learned that pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co., Inc., was competing for a billion-dollar expansion in Elkton, a town in the Shenandoah Valley.

The highly transmissible omicron variant of the novel coronavirus upended perceptions about proper mitigation. People who had been wearing fabric masks began switching over to N95 and KN95 respirators, leading to greater demand for respirators.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Virginia Tech's Rob Gourdie was busy investigating how to deliver medications more effectively.

Kimberly Kelly was a biomedical engineer at the University of Virginia (UVA), working on ways to diagnose pancreatic cancer, when she discovered a protein expressed by the cancer cells.

Universities, VA Bio+Tech Park Draw Investment to Richmond For communities seeking to recreate the success of well-known life sciences clusters in Boston, San Diego, and the San Francisco Bay Area, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News suggests there’s a straightforward formula to replicate.

Northern Virginia’s advantages in attracting talent are well known, from best-in-class public schools, to vibrant communities, to the attractions and sights of Washington, D.C.

Why So Many Executives Choose Virginia for Their Corporate Headquarters The last few decades have solidified Virginia’s position as America’s hometown for corporate headquarters. In total, 580 companies have relocated to or expanded headquarters offices in Virginia in the last decade.

Despite facing an unprecedented global pandemic, executives at GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare (GSK) were able to recruit 150 new employees for the company’s research and development center in Richmond.

Like many medical device startups, Luminoah began with a bright idea brought about by a personal need. In 2019, founder Neal Piper’s young son, Noah, had a medical issue that necessitated the use of a feeding tube.

Chandra Briggman is president and CEO of Activation Capital, an independent authority that supports life sciences and advanced technology companies and entrepreneurship in the Richmond area.

John Newby is CEO of Virginia Bio, the nonprofit statewide trade association that serves and promotes the life sciences industry in the Commonwealth.

Richmond and Petersburg Host a New Pharmaceutical Cluster Making Essential Medicines With Innovative Techniques The COVID-19 pandemic has brought shortages of all kinds to the U.S. economy, from cream cheese and toilet paper to N95 masks and consumer electronics.

International Companies Find Advantages in Locating U.S. Headquarters in Virginia Foreign companies looking for a launching point to serve the U.S. and North American markets have many choices on where to plant their flag. Virginia has proven fruitful as that launching point for many of them.

New Amazonians are onboarding. Construction milestones are being met. From timelines to pipelines, Amazon’s mammoth HQ2 undertaking is on time and full speed ahead.