Rona Ambrose gave her alma mater a million-dollar boost yesterday.
Ambrose, visiting the University of Victoria in her role as federal minister of western economic diversification, announced funding of $1,036,400 for technology-related projects organized through the Gordon Head campus. The funds will provide equipment for the chemistry and physics/astronomy departments, enhancements for the renowned VENUS undersea project, and an upgrade for the conference centre at the UVic-owned Vancouver Island Technology Park.
“Strengthening UVic’s world-class research capacity is important to British Columbia, but it’s also important to the rest of the country,” said Ambrose, who graduated from UVic in 1995 with a degree in psychology before moving on to the University of Alberta and eventually a career in politics.
Ambrose, a former environment minister, lauded the VENUS (Victoria Experimental Network Under the Sea) project as an example of “leading-edge science and technology.” The $353,700 in funding it receives will purchase specialized equipment to be used near the mouth of the Fraser River.