Post by fastwalker on Sept 21, 2004 0:48:00 GMT -5
About Stewart Blusson
www.frontierpacific.com/
Stewart Blusson, one of the two geologists credited with the discovery of diamonds in western Canada and who shares ten percent ownership in the Ekati mine, donated $32 million to his alma mater, the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. The donation is earmarked specifically for scientific research. The provincial government of British Columbia and the Canadian Foundation of Innovation must match each dollar donated.
Douglas Irving mentioned this large donation. He remarked that it was a way for Stewart Blusson to get his revenge and some personal satisfaction for compelling the matching funds from the University of British Columbia and the Canadian government just for research only.
www.attawaygems.com/NMFG/program_speaker_douglas_irving.html
Media Release / Tue. Oct. 13, 1998
UBC grad donates $50 million to alma mater
University of British Columbia graduate Dr. Stewart Blusson has donated $50 million to the university, a gift believed to be the largest single donation ever made to a Canadian public institution by an individual or corporation.
"It is an extraordinary gift not simply because of the amount, but because Dr. Blusson has granted us the privilege of allocating the money specifically to research and academic excellence," said UBC President Martha Piper.
Dr. Blusson, who completed his Bachelor of Science degree at UBC in 1960, said he was motivated in part by the federal government's creation last year of an $800-million fund known as the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI). Designed to help universities, colleges and hospitals upgrade their research facilities, the CFI covers 40 per cent of the cost of facilities with the remainder coming from the public and private sectors.
"The most important research is often the most basic research, which the public often does not get excited about because it, by itself, is simply another piece of the puzzle. However, its significance will only be recognized later when a different researcher in a distant laboratory builds on this advancement of knowledge to ultimately make a major scientific breakthrough," Dr. Blusson said.
In response to the need for private sector participation, Dr. Blusson wants a substantial portion of the $50 million used to attract CFI funding. Accordingly, Piper said the donation will not be used for salaries, administration, or on-going operations, but rather will support the funding of infrastructure and equipment that will help take UBC "to a whole new level of research and academic excellence in the 21st century."
"Dr. Blusson fervently hopes that his gift encourages others to make donations not only to UBC but to universities and research institutions in Canada," Piper said. "It is his firm belief that collectively we can and must improve the level of research and academic excellence across the country."
Piper added that Dr. Blusson was aware of UBC's public awareness campaign which urges people to "Think About It -- UBC Research."
"He has obviously done some serious thinking and has translated his thoughts into dramatic action," she said. "This gift is a bold and decisive commitment. We at UBC will respond in kind as we set about our goal of becoming the leading research institution in Canada and one of the world's finest public universities."
Biographical information on Dr. Stewart Blusson follows.
Biographical information: Dr. Stewart Blusson, BSc, PhD
Born in Vancouver, Dr. Blusson completed his Science degree at the University of British Columbia and received his PhD from the University of California at Berkeley in 1964.
For the next 15 years he displayed extraordinary skills in field work with the federal Geological Survey of Canada, leading regional geological mapping and research programs in the central Yukon and parts of British Columbia.
He married Marilyn in 1980. She shares his enthusiasm for the wilderness and the stimulation of discovery, and together they planned to explore broad horizons.
In 1981 he left the Geological Survey to explore the modes of formation of mineral deposits from Mexico to the Arctic, piloting his own plane and helicopter over vast areas.
He discovered a number of important occurrences of gold, copper and other metals in Canada and the U.S. A gold mine was developed from one of these discoveries in Manitoba by Pioneering Metals Corporation.
His authoritative knowledge of Canadian and global geology led him to conclude that conditions for the occurrence of diamonds in Canada were favourable, and accordingly, he developed an exploration plan using highly refined scientific methods.
In 1981, he and fellow geologist Chuck Fipke began searching in geographically appropriate regions of the Northwest Territories, concentrating their search on indicator minerals commonly associated with diamonds.
By following the trails left when the glaciers melted 10,000 years ago, a diamond-bearing kimberlite pipe was discovered in 1991 in the Lac Gras area north of Yellowknife. This and similar discoveries in the area are expected to result in the development of a diamond mine industry in Canada.
Dr. Blusson continues to conduct arduous scientific field work in the mountains of Northern and Western Canada and in the Canadian Shield. Energetic, determined and innovative, he quietly pursues dreams of new discoveries.
www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/media/releases/1998/mr-98-109.html
www.frontierpacific.com/
Stewart Blusson, one of the two geologists credited with the discovery of diamonds in western Canada and who shares ten percent ownership in the Ekati mine, donated $32 million to his alma mater, the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. The donation is earmarked specifically for scientific research. The provincial government of British Columbia and the Canadian Foundation of Innovation must match each dollar donated.
Douglas Irving mentioned this large donation. He remarked that it was a way for Stewart Blusson to get his revenge and some personal satisfaction for compelling the matching funds from the University of British Columbia and the Canadian government just for research only.
www.attawaygems.com/NMFG/program_speaker_douglas_irving.html
Media Release / Tue. Oct. 13, 1998
UBC grad donates $50 million to alma mater
University of British Columbia graduate Dr. Stewart Blusson has donated $50 million to the university, a gift believed to be the largest single donation ever made to a Canadian public institution by an individual or corporation.
"It is an extraordinary gift not simply because of the amount, but because Dr. Blusson has granted us the privilege of allocating the money specifically to research and academic excellence," said UBC President Martha Piper.
Dr. Blusson, who completed his Bachelor of Science degree at UBC in 1960, said he was motivated in part by the federal government's creation last year of an $800-million fund known as the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI). Designed to help universities, colleges and hospitals upgrade their research facilities, the CFI covers 40 per cent of the cost of facilities with the remainder coming from the public and private sectors.
"The most important research is often the most basic research, which the public often does not get excited about because it, by itself, is simply another piece of the puzzle. However, its significance will only be recognized later when a different researcher in a distant laboratory builds on this advancement of knowledge to ultimately make a major scientific breakthrough," Dr. Blusson said.
In response to the need for private sector participation, Dr. Blusson wants a substantial portion of the $50 million used to attract CFI funding. Accordingly, Piper said the donation will not be used for salaries, administration, or on-going operations, but rather will support the funding of infrastructure and equipment that will help take UBC "to a whole new level of research and academic excellence in the 21st century."
"Dr. Blusson fervently hopes that his gift encourages others to make donations not only to UBC but to universities and research institutions in Canada," Piper said. "It is his firm belief that collectively we can and must improve the level of research and academic excellence across the country."
Piper added that Dr. Blusson was aware of UBC's public awareness campaign which urges people to "Think About It -- UBC Research."
"He has obviously done some serious thinking and has translated his thoughts into dramatic action," she said. "This gift is a bold and decisive commitment. We at UBC will respond in kind as we set about our goal of becoming the leading research institution in Canada and one of the world's finest public universities."
Biographical information on Dr. Stewart Blusson follows.
Biographical information: Dr. Stewart Blusson, BSc, PhD
Born in Vancouver, Dr. Blusson completed his Science degree at the University of British Columbia and received his PhD from the University of California at Berkeley in 1964.
For the next 15 years he displayed extraordinary skills in field work with the federal Geological Survey of Canada, leading regional geological mapping and research programs in the central Yukon and parts of British Columbia.
He married Marilyn in 1980. She shares his enthusiasm for the wilderness and the stimulation of discovery, and together they planned to explore broad horizons.
In 1981 he left the Geological Survey to explore the modes of formation of mineral deposits from Mexico to the Arctic, piloting his own plane and helicopter over vast areas.
He discovered a number of important occurrences of gold, copper and other metals in Canada and the U.S. A gold mine was developed from one of these discoveries in Manitoba by Pioneering Metals Corporation.
His authoritative knowledge of Canadian and global geology led him to conclude that conditions for the occurrence of diamonds in Canada were favourable, and accordingly, he developed an exploration plan using highly refined scientific methods.
In 1981, he and fellow geologist Chuck Fipke began searching in geographically appropriate regions of the Northwest Territories, concentrating their search on indicator minerals commonly associated with diamonds.
By following the trails left when the glaciers melted 10,000 years ago, a diamond-bearing kimberlite pipe was discovered in 1991 in the Lac Gras area north of Yellowknife. This and similar discoveries in the area are expected to result in the development of a diamond mine industry in Canada.
Dr. Blusson continues to conduct arduous scientific field work in the mountains of Northern and Western Canada and in the Canadian Shield. Energetic, determined and innovative, he quietly pursues dreams of new discoveries.
www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/media/releases/1998/mr-98-109.html
