Plug for Event 5.9.2011-Investing in Innovation: Astrobotic Technology and Pittsburgh’s Quest for the Moon, co-sponsored by Pitt Law's Innovation Practice Institute/CMU

       For those of us  committed to the innovation and economic development of the region, here is a plug for an event to which I am going on Monday ....  JOIN ME.     The Innovation Practice Institute (IPI) at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law is a first-of-its-kind collaboration among Pitt Law School, the practicing bar, and local innovators and entrepreneurs. The IPI re-imagines how the legal profession can advance regional economic development through cutting edge research, new classroom models, hands-on mentoring of law students, and community engagement.         The IPI is launching its first Investing in Innovation event on Monday, May 9, 2011, at 4:30pm, at Carnegie Mellon University.  The IPI’s Investing in Innovation series promotes innovation and economic development by showcasing a new or developing industry in the region, and by introducing local innovators and start-ups within that industry to the regional civic, business, and investment communities. Our first event – Investing in Innovation: Astrobotic Technology and Pittsburgh’s Quest for the Moon – celebrates Pittsburgh’s potential to become an industry hub for planetary robotics and space commercialization, and features Astrobotic Technology, Inc., a CMU spin-off space delivery company with a mission to enable the commercialization and exploration of the Moon and other planetary bodies.         The Investing in Innovation: Astrobotic Technology and Pittsburgh’s Quest for the Moon event is hosted by the Innovation Practice Institute (Pitt Law) and Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Computer Science, and will be held on May 9^th at the Planetary Robotics Lab (1^st Floor, Gates Building) at CMU.  The evening will commence at 4:30pm with a networking cocktail session and informal demonstration featuring planetary robotics, followed by welcoming remarks from Governor Corbett’s regional director, Mary Anne Eisenreich, and two distinguished speakers, senior NASA official Alan Ladwig and Fredkin Professor of Robotics at CMU’s Robotics Institute William “Red” Whittaker.  The evening will conclude with a business presentation by Astrobotic Technology, Inc., followed by an open discussion. Refreshments will be provided.            This event is made possible through the generosity of Alpern Rosenthal and Schnader, Harrison, Segal & Lewis, LLP.   If you are interested, contact Justine Kasznica, (contact info below ) or RSVP to kasznica@pitt.edu by TODAY Wednesday, May 4^th and please feel free to share this blog post with  friends and colleagues.Justine Kasznica, Executive Director, Innovation Practice Institute, University of Pittsburgh School of Law, 412-648-5966, 781-413-1230 (mobile), kasznica@pitt.eduThe flyer is to the right.