Donation funds innovation centre at Stavanger University

28 Nov 2007 | News
One of the largest gifts to research ever in Norway is to establish a Centre for Innovation Research in Stavanger.

Picture courtesy University of Stavanger

Stavanger University in Norway has received a donation of NOK 50 million (around €30 million) from the Gjedebo family to establish a Centre for Innovation Research, to be jointly managed by the university, the International Research Institute of Stavanger (IRIS) and Rogaland Science Park.

The donation, one of the largest gifts to research ever made in Norway, makes it possible to develop a research environment which is unique both in Norway and internationally, providing a basis for education and development of entrepreneurial attitudes in companies, the public sector and among students.

The donation comes from Jon Gjedebo, one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the Stavanger region, his wife Torunn Lange Gjedebo and their two sons, Tore and Finn.

“We have for some time been thinking of giving a donation to the university and looking for the right purpose and opportunity. It all came together when we heard of the Centre for Innovation Research,” said Tore Gjedebo, managing director of Styrbjørn AS, the family investment company.


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