UVic Scholarship Honours BC Public Servant

A graduate memorial scholarship in natural resource management is being established at the University of Victoria’s School of Public Administration in memory of the late Jack Ebbels, a long-time BC public servant.

“Many students in our Masters of Public Administration and Masters of Arts in Dispute Resolution programs obtain co-op placements in the natural resource management sector and later move into careers in this area,” says Herman Bakvis, acting director of UVic’s School of Public Administration. "This scholarship will help to draw students to this important sector and Jack’s legacy will live on in the opportunities this scholarship will offer.”

Ebbels served in the BC public service for over 25 years, overseeing BC’s northeast oil and gas exploration and acting as BC’s chief counsel and chief negotiator for the Nisga’a Treaty. He was awarded the Queen’s Jubilee Medal in 2002 for his outstanding contribution to the public service. At the time of his accident he was an active member of the Alberta Energy and Resources Conservation Board.

“For Jack, government—regardless of whether it was federal, provincial, municipal or First Nations—was all about getting things done for the greater public good,” says Ross Curtis, a former colleague and commissioner for BC Oil and Gas. “He solved difficult problems and created opportunities by working with people towards a common goal and we all hope that this scholarship will help develop more of that talent for Canada. “

The petroleum industry quickly organized significant funds for this important scholarship. Donations from Nexen, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd, Devon Canada, Shell Canada, Enbridge, Cenovus, Encana, Pembina Pipelines, Pengrowth, Spectra Canada, Marathon Oil Canada, BP Canada Energy Company, Kinder Morgan Foundation, Progress Exploration, TransCanada Pipelines, the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, the Energy Resource Conservation Board and a large number of private donors including the Ebbels family established an endowment of over $125,000 with the first award to be presented to a UVic student in the fall of 2010.

“The energy community, which includes, companies, associations, government agencies and individuals, worked closely with Jack for over a decade and always appreciated his passionate commitment to problem solving and sound public policy”, says co-chair of the fundraising committee and Nexen Inc. Vice-President, Pierre Alvarez. “We believe that a scholarship in the field of natural resource management is a fitting tribute to someone who left such an important legacy in the responsible development of Western Canada’s natural resources.”

For more information regarding donations contact Lynne Milnes at 250-472-5031 or lmilnes@uvic.ca.
 

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