A new council make up of community leaders will advise the Lingle administration on its goal to transition Hawai'i's economy from a land-based economy to one based on innovation.

At a news conference yesterday, Gov. Linda Lingle said the Hawai'i Innovation Council will provide the administration with input and feedback from Ha-wai'i's business, education and workforce sectors.

"Innovation is not a buzz word, it is not an issue for a single legislative session," Lingle said yesterday. "It is about the future of our state."

Three entrepreneurs who are Hawai'i residents or part-time residents will lead the council.

They are Marc Benioff, chairman and CEO of Salesforce.com, an on-demand customer relationship management solution vendor; Ron Higgins, president and CEO of RSHF LLC, a private investment management firm; and Jay Shidler, founder and managing partner of The Shidler Group, a national real-estate organization, and benefactor to the University of Hawai'i College of Business, which now bears his name.

Two council seats will be reserved for representatives from the state Board of Education and the University of Hawai'i. The remaining 10 positions are open to members of the community.

The council is a component of the Hawai'i Innovation Initiative, which aims to diversify the state's economy through science and technology. Last month, state lawmakers passed a more than $17 million innovation package that included $500,000 to expand aerospace development in the Islands and $400,000 for a technology and incubator center in Kaka'ako. The package also reserved $5 million in research money for small local technology companies.

In addition, science, technology, engineering and math education, or STEM, academies will be established on Kaua'i through a Hawai'i Excellence through Science and Technology, or HiEST, Academy pilot program. The program will be administered by Kaua'i Community College at two public schools.

The new council will coordinate with state, federal, county and private-sector organizations, including the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, Department of Education, and Hawai'i's colleges and universities.

"Our chances of getting it right increase exponentially if we are together on this," Lingle said, adding, "We can't afford not to be together on this."

Lingle yesterday also signed a joint statement of understanding with the National Science Board, an independent advisory body to Congress and the president to explore partnerships to promote STEM education in the state's workforce, businesses and schools, including colleges and universities.

Hawai'i's fledgling STEM skills programs are "a prototype for what we want for the rest of the country," said National Science Board chairman Dr. Steven Beering.

The science board is developing its own National Action Plan for promoting STEM education, which it will release to Congress in August.

"We cannot ignore our nation's growing dependence on innovation and technology," Beering said.