Credit: MCpl Vincent Carbonneau, Rideau Hall, OSGG
“It is an unbelievable experience to sit at a table with the Governor General, a former Prime Minister and some of the most gifted university students in Canada” says UBC Okanagan School of Engineering graduate student Hirushie Karunathilake.
Karunathilake, who is a PhD. candidate in mechanical engineering under the supervision of Kasun Hewage, was recently in Ottawa to attend a dinner at Rideau Hall celebrating Queen Elizabeth Scholarship recipients. The goal of the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship program is to “foster a dynamic community of young global leaders that create lasting impacts at home and abroad.”
UBC Okanagan received QES funding in 2015 for a four-year interdisciplinary project called “Innovative Solutions for Developing and managing Climate Resilient Transport Infrastructure in South Asia Region: A Life Cycle Thinking Approach”.
The project has been extended to focus on urban infrastructure planning, of which transportation infrastructure is a major component. Within this research, the life cycle environmental impacts related to infrastructure development are being currently assessed. Multidisciplinary studies are being conducted on planning urban infrastructure and transportation for various regions. The results of an assessment made for the City of Kelowna have already been published in a high-impact factor journal. This knowledge will be applied through collaborative research to support infrastructure planning and development in the South Asian region in the future.
For more information about this QES-funded research, click here.
Photo Credit: MCpl Vincent Carbonneau, Rideau Hall, OSGG