The faculty and staff of the VIU Chemistry Department are dedicated to the art of teaching and learning, and have a strong sense of community and a variety of scientific interests. Small class sizes and close student-faculty interactions allow us to foster a diverse community of learners and researchers. Many of our professors have active research programs, please see the biographies below for details.
Professors
Christine C. Tong, BSc (Waterloo), PhD (UVic) - Department Chair
Christine is currently a co-chair of the Chemistry Department. She joined the department in summer 2012. Previously, she was an Assistant Professor at Regis University in Denver, Colorado where she taught general, analytical and environmental chemistry. Her prior experience includes post-doctoral fellowships at the University of Edinburgh, where she studied molecules used to extract metals in the mining industry, and the University of Southampton, where she studied chloride and carbonate transport across lipid bilayer membranes. Christine continues to be interested in membrane transport and supramolecular chemistry, especially in applications that may benefit the area of world development. She is somewhat nosey; therefore, interested in nearly everything else as well. Christine teaches Chemistry Fundamentals I and II (CHEM 140 and 142) and Reaction Kinetics and Mechanisms (CHEM 341). She loves teaching and helping people and can be contacted at Christine.Tong@viu.ca.
Kyle Duncan - BSc (VIU), PhD (UVic)
Kyle joined the Faculty in the fall of 2020. Prior, he completed a PhD at the University of Victoria based in the Applied Environmental Research labs at VIU. He then moved to Sweden for a postdoctoral fellowship at Uppsala University before making the move back to the west coast of BC. Kyle’s research interests are at the interface between chemistry and biology, including bioanalytical mass spectrometry, metabolomics, and lipidomics. He builds custom instrumentation to spatially map small molecules in tissue and investigate metabolite and lipid changes in biological samples that are indicative of health and disease. Kyle currently teaches first year chemistry (CHEM 140/141/142) and CHEM 412, and is involved in the supervision of student research projects (CHEM 490/491). He can be reached at Kyle.Duncan@viu.ca.
Duane Friesen - BSc, PhD (Saskatchewan)
Duane joined the faculty in 2000. Previously, he was a research associate at the University of Calgary and the National Water Research Institute (Saskatoon), studying the use of TiO2 and polyoxotungstate catalysts in the presence of UV light for the destruction of organic contaminants in water. He was also a postdoc at the University of North Carolina, where he studied photoredox processes in metal complexes. Duane's interests include photochemical approaches to water and air decontamination, and the role of UV in mediating chemical processes in the environment. He teaches engineering chemistry (CHEM 150), inorganic (CHEM 222), Coordination Chemistry (CHEM 325), Integrated Organic and Inorganic Laboratory (CHEM 351), Integrated Physical Chemistry Laboratory (CHEM 352) and Bio-Inorganic Chemistry (CHEM 323). Duane can be reached at Duane.Friesen@viu.ca.
Christopher Gill - BSc, BScH (Acadia), PhD (UBC)
Chris joined the department in the fall of 1997. He had previously finished a Post Doc at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico working on developing new methods for detection of environmental contamination at government sites and then was a research associate at UBC also studying environmental contaminants. He is trained as an analytical chemist with an interest in laser spectroscopy and ion trap mass spectroscopy. He and Erik Krogh have been the main forces behind the establishment of the Applied Environmental Research Laboratory (AERL). Chris teaches practical spectroscopy (CHEM 213), chemical analysis (CHEM 311) and instrumental analysis (CHEM 312). He is also involved in the supervision of many CHEM 490 research students. Chris can be reached at Chris.Gill@viu.ca.
Jessie Key – BSc (Hons) (TRU), PhD (U of A)
Jessie joined the Faculty in the Fall of 2012. He has previously taught Organic Chemistry as a sessional lecturer at UBC-Okanagan and was an instructor for Academic Upgrading and Chemical Technology at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT). Jessie’s area of research expertise is Chemical Biology; with a focus on fluorophore synthesis, labelling and bioassay development. However, Jessie has also been active in Chemistry Education Research and Open Education Resource development. Jessie teaches a variety of courses including first year (CHEM 140 and 142), Engineering Chemistry (CHEM 150), Organic Chemistry (CHEM 231 and 232), Integrated Organic and Inorganic Lab (CHEM 351), Emerging Topics and Professional Practice in Chemistry (CHEM 400) and Macromolecular Chemistry of Biomolecules (CHEM 432). Jessie can be reached at Jessie.Key@viu.ca
Erik Krogh - BSc (Toronto), PhD (UVic)
Erik joined the faculty at Malaspina in 1998. After two years as an NSERC post-doctoral researcher, he taught in the Chemistry and Water Quality programs at OUC. His research background includes mechanistic organic photochemistry in aqueous systems (UVic), the photochemistry of vision (University of Hawaii) and environmental photochemistry of haloaromatic molecules as models for PCBs and dioxins (Oregon State University). He and Chris Gill are Co-Directors of the Applied Environmental Research Laboratory (AERL), which is a nationally funded facility conducting pure and applied research on real time measurements of environmental processes. Erik is presently teaching Environmental Chemical Analysis (CHEM 212), Aqueous/Atmospheric Environmental Chemistry (CHEM 301/302), and Integrated Physical Chemistry Laboratory (CHEM 352). He is also involved in the supervision of student research projects CHEM 490/491. He can be reached at Erik.Krogh@viu.ca.
Heather Wiebe - BSc (UFV), PhD (SFU)
Heather joined the department in the fall of 2020. Prior to that she was a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Edinburgh, studying quantum phase changes in hydrogen under extreme high pressure. Heather’s area of expertise lies in computational chemistry and modelling, with a focus on the response of complex systems to applied pressure. She is particularly interested in studying the effect of pressure on biological systems such as proteins and lipid membranes, and how these systems have adapted to high pressure in deep-sea organisms. Heather currently teaches Chemistry Fundamentals I and II (CHEM 141 and CHEM 142), Physical Chemistry (CHEM 241), and Bonding, Structure and Properties (CHEM 441). She can be reached at Heather.Wiebe@viu.ca.
Alexandra Weissfloch - BSc, PhD (McGill) - Retired August 2025
Alexandra joined the Faculty in the fall of 2002. She had previously completed a year teaching Organic Chemistry and General Chemistry at Acadia University. Prior to that, she was a senior research chemist at Chemica Technologies, Inc. in Oregon where her research included drug delivery systems and enzyme immobilization on solid supports. While on leave from 2012-2014, Alexandra studied the fields of green chemistry and toxicology in order to help the chemistry program move towards a more sustainable curriculum. Alexandra’s main areas of interest are green chemistry in education and the use of biocatalysts in organic chemistry. She taught Organic Chemistry (CHEM 231 and 232), Bioorganic Chemistry (CHEM 334), and Green Chemistry and Toxicology (CHEM 300). Alexandra can be contacted at Alexandra.Weissfloch@viu.ca
Technicians
Peter Diamente – BSc (Carleton), MSc (UVic)
Peter joined the department in the summer of 2006 and is one of two full-time chemistry lab technicians. He obtained his BSc (Hons) from Carleton University in 2001. He then spent a year working as an analytical chemist at Accutest Laboratories Ltd. in Ottawa, where he carried out analyses for high-profile contracts such as the Walkerton Inquiry. In 2005 he graduated with a MSc of Chemistry in the field of luminescent nanotechnologies from the University of Victoria, and continued to work for another year as a research associate for the same group. Peter can be reached at Peter.Diamente@viu.ca
Sarah Jackson - MSc (UVic)
Sarah joined the department in 2020. Sarah is a My Green Lab certified Sustainable Chemist. She also completed the Green Chemistry and Chemical Stewardship program at the University of Washington, a Master in Chemistry at the University of Victoria, and a Bachelor in Chemistry at Acadia University. Sarah currently supports the following courses: Integrated Organic and Inorganic Laboratory (CHEM 351); Physical Chemistry (CHEM 241); Inorganic Chemistry (CHEM 222); Chemistry Fundamentals I Laboratory (CHEM 140L); and Chemistry Fundamentals II Laboratory (CHEM 142L). Current VIU chemistry students may get in touch with Sarah about work opportunities in the lab, sarah.jackson@viu.ca