If we don't take this opportunity then it will be our loss

If we don't take this opportunity, then it will be our loss."According to David Aukland, the professor of business creation at Manchester University, Manchester is beginning to build a culture of enterprise That needs to be replicated around the country. "Universities have a great opportunity and they should grasp it," he says. And they should do so in a uniquely British way - one that fits into our establishments and our order of things, not one that apes America."At the moment we're stifling students' entrepreneurial activity. What we should do is encourage it against a background of knowledge."e-mail: lucy scribbl.demon.co.ukThe conference "Stimulating Regional Competitiveness in the UK" is on 15 June at the Cumberland Hotel, London W1. Speakers include Diana Warwick, CVCP's chief executive, David Watson, the director of the University of Brighton, and Vincent Watts, the Vice-chancellor of the University of East Anglia. For more details ring 0171 240 9393.MANCHESTER: BUSINESS IS BLOOMINGA GREAT traditional civic university, Manchester has a reputation for high-quality research and a sparkling night-life.

Now it is making great efforts to connect with the regional economy. To this end, it has set up the North West Enterprise Network, linking all eight universities in the North West to disseminate the idea of incubators where people are given space to "be creative in science", as David Aukland, professor of business creation, puts it. "Just as someone who is interested in physics and chemistry can come here and learn about those subjects and do research in them, so too they should be able to come here and set up an enterprise at the forefront of knowledge in physics. These enterprises are driven by creativity rather than by business management."Manchester's incubator unit is called Campus Ventures.

To date, it has nurtured 38 companies into being, all in the biological sciences and engineering areas. They include two that are designing new algae blooms, beneficial to humans and fish. Another has invented a "Rocking Robin", an automatic baby soother Each employs an average of four people. Those creating the companies stay in the incubator, using university equipment and knowledge for up to three years, moving out to the university's own or another science park when they're ready to face the real world Only one company has failed after leaving the incubator. In addition, a new biosciences incubator has just been built at a cost of pounds 18m. It's hoped this will help to create successful companies in the biosciences field.The long-term aim is to set up a pounds 60m Venture Capital fund at the university for the creation of small high-technology businesses.One of the problems highlighted in the report is the difficulty of networking with other universities for the good of the region when they have to compete for students and research money.