Cambridge to Add Entrepreneurial "Walk of Fame"

The rivalry between the Boston-area and California’s Silicon Valley has existed for years now. It often makes news when a company chooses to leave one innovation hotspot for the other. Recently, though, a story came out about Boston borrowing from a different part of California: Hollywood. Bill Aulet, Director of the MIT Entrepreneurship Center, has proposed creating a “Walk of Fame” in Cambridge’s Kendall Square to commemorate great entrepreneurs and inventors from the area.

Aulet’s idea already has the support of Lelant Cheung, Cambridge City Councilor. According to Cheung, the proposal is presently in committee and he hopes the full Council will vote on the matter this fall. (Image courtesy: http://bit.ly/d4CWV4)

Aulet says that the idea for the Entrepreneurial Walk of Fame comes from the belief that “successful entrepreneurship is about spirit as much as it is about skills.” “Our model is Educate-Nurture-Network-Celebrate,” Aulet said. “The stars on the sidewalk falls right in line with the ‘Celebrate,’ which we should do more of. If you want to keep a culture of risk-taking and entrepreneurship, then we should treat our entrepreneurs as stars, and what better way than this?”

If the project is adopted, Councilman Cheung says the courtyard around the Marriott and the Kendall Square T Station would be the ideal location to place the first stars. The stars would include the name of an entrepreneur or inventor from the Cambridge area, his or her key contribution, and perhaps the date of the contribution. (Image courtesy: http://bit.ly/b6QiP6)

Adding a Walk of Fame for entrepreneurs and inventors is a novel implementation of a tried concept. It does make sense that celebrating the contributions of these people would help to inspire further innovation. If this idea becomes a reality, with all the great entrepreneurs and inventors that came out of the Cambridge area, it will be interesting to see who is recognized first and how the decision is made.

[Sources: http://bit.ly/9oGKh1, http://bit.ly/d4CWV4]