NEW Jersey, the Garden State, is one of the 13 original colonies of the United States and has become a densely populated region with an intensively used transportation system mostly used to take people and goods out of the state. The state has, perhaps a little unfairly, come to symbolize the rundown industrial northeast of the country and to be associated with corrupt politics and organized crime. New Jersey residents might resent these imputations but have, nevertheless, found it difficult to create much of a sense of distinctive identity.
The state is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean, New York State, Delaware, and Pennsylvania. It has a total land area of just over 8,700 square miles, making it the fifth smallest in the country, but has a population estimated at being just over 8,500,000, which is the country’s 11th largest. Its capital city is Trenton, and other large urban areas include Newark, which is a larger city than the capital. The state has one of the most ethnically and religiously diverse populations of any in the country, which has become associated, since the 1980s at least, with progressive politics, resulting in the regular election of Democratic candidates.
The general sentiment toward ethical issues is in line with this political loyalty, and hence there appear to be majorities that are in favor of same-sex unions and are pro-choice in the case of abortions. In this environment, the state administration has forged ahead with stem cell research. The State of New Jersey Commission on Science and Technology offers funding for stem cell research, a free source of stem cells for research, and the nurturing of a supportive environment for such research, including funding and support for the necessary infrastructure. The commission has set out its main commitments as being to advance New Jersey’s position as a leader in scientific research and bring the benefits of stem cell research to New Jersey residents; to encourage and enable the state’s renowned research and life sciences communities to develop quality, innovative treatments for patients; to support ground-breaking research that contributes to the understanding of stem cells and their potential and the translation of such research to patient treatment; and to generate economic opportunity and job growth in New Jersey by accelerating commercialization of new therapies and new technologies related to stem cell research.
State administrators have shown a dedication to preserving state laws and resisting the imposition of unwanted values or policies from elsewhere.
stem cell research funding
The Stem Cell Research Grant Program offered $10 million in funds to a range of academic, not-for-profit, and for-profit organizations that have been able to provide appropriate proposals for achievable research projects. The program recognizes the importance of such research contributing to the economy as a whole and the fact that organizations creating relationships working together may provide better results than they can working alone. The provision of business incubators in the state has demonstrated the ways in which these forms of synergy can produce productive results from a commercial perspective. Existing projects have already sought to find stem cell-related treatments aimed at tackling Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, spinal cord injuries, stroke, and brain trauma. Facilities funded in the state include the Stem Cell Institute of New Jersey in New Brunswick, the New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark, the Elie Katz Umbilical Cord Blood Program, and the Garden State Cancer Center, among others.
However, the state’s progress toward a scientific utopia for stem cell and other forms of research has not always been a smooth one. In late 2007, Governor Jon Corzine proposed on a statewide ballot that a $270 million bond be created to fund the various initiatives promoting stem cell science. This measure, together with another concerning sales tax reallocation, was rejected by the voters, which is being taken to mean that the electorate prefers these state priorities, if they are to be priorities, to be funded directly rather than by the state taking on debt. However, other interpretations have also been proposed. Even so, it seems that state administrators intend to push forward with plans to make the Garden State the country’s leading location for life sciences. Corzine has, for example, reportedly invested his own money in developing the research infrastructure, and given the nature of state politics, it seems unlikely that opponents of stem cell research on ethical grounds will be elected to high office over the short or medium terms.
Private sector interests are also likely to be powerful motivating forces in continuing the initiative. Corzine, in October 2007, for example, opened the Christopher Reeve Pavilion as part of the New Jersey Institute of Stem Cell Research. The late Mr. Reeve was an internationally famous actor who suffered spinal damage that eventually led to his death as the result of a horse-riding accident. A native New Jerseyan, Reeve was a passionate campaigner on behalf of stem cell research, which, it is anticipated, will eventually provide a cure for his own condition as well as for so many others.
