For the 90 percent of the state that does not bask in the glow of Boston’s dynamic economy, the Blaine House Conference on Maine’s Creative Economy in Lewiston last week was inspirational and challenging. If Gov. John Baldacci is as serious about promoting Maine as part of this movement as he appeared to be at the conference, he will establish long-term standards for investment and achievement now and focus the state’s attention on them.

The creative economy, crudely, is made up of people who create – artists, but also engineers, architects, writers, computer software makers, marketers, scientists and teachers. It is either a very small percent of the total economy, if defined by artists only, or as much as a third, if defined by Richard Florida, an economist at Carnegie Mellon University and the author of the best-seller, “The Rise of the Creative Class” and the keynote speaker at the conference.

Under Dr. Florida’s definition, this subset of the economy has grown from 5 percent of the total a generation ago, to 10 percent 20 years ago to more than 30 percent today, accounting now for half of total wages. This growth, he says, redefines the age as much as the spread of industry redefined an earlier age. Maine’s choice is to stand by and observe these changes or try to shape them here to the best advantage of its residents.

That sounds obvious, but it is a crucial point because the creative economy is people-centered: Rather than migration following the jobs, industries will go to where highly trained people live and enjoy living. Quality of life matters – outdoor recreation but also the symphony, solitude along with a nightlife. The creative economy developed in urban areas but has been developed in other areas as well. Whether it can be grown in Maine’s many smaller cities remains to be seen.

But to help, the governor could follow the excellent start of the conference by, for instance, incorporating some of the ideas into the standards of his Pine Tree Development Zones, which provide financial incentives to encourage new private investment in financial services, manufacturing and certain technologies. Given what Maine has learned about the many components of building a creative economy, the Pine Tree zones could also become pilot programs for this new economy in a rural setting.

Higher education plays an important role among many other elements in creating this economy – for supplying all those bright workers, conducting the R&D that spins off businesses, providing the intellectual and social activities valued in the creative economy. The governor might set a goal for the University of Maine System to more formally incorporate some of the ideas generated last week into its strategic reform plan.

The many organizers of the Lewiston conference deserve credit for bringing the creative economy so effectively to Maine’s attention. Now the governor’s office should take the ideas given to him at the conference and start getting specific about meeting the standards needed to compete in the creative economy.