Chilean President Michelle Bachelet visited the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory today to investigate possible alternative energy technologies that could be used to help combat Chile's "severe energy crisis."

The visit came after Bachelet signed an agreement with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger that created a partnership between Chile and California aimed at promoting innovation, higher education and alternative sources of energy, said Bachelet at a lecture sponsored by UC Berkeley's Center for Latin American Studies.

There have been a significant number of Chilean citizens who attended college in California and then returned to Chile to use their education in positive ways, from economic endeavors to the arts said Bachelet, who has two nephews who graduated from UC Berkeley.

Bachelet, who is Chile's first female president, also advocated for Chilean women's rights during her lecture, saying she is trying to pass a bill that would make sure that women and men who have the same job will receive equal salaries.

Bachelet said her administration is focusing on improving education and providing Chileans with tools to succeed as a means to obtain development. She said she hopes to increase the number of Chileans with masters degrees or higher to 30,000 within the next 10 years.

"Higher education will be our shortcut to development," she said.