Prof. Tilak Hewawasam

Director

Tilak is a Professor in Geology attached to the Department of Geography, University of Peradeniya since 2015. He joined the Centre for Environmental Sustainability (CES) first as the Deputy Director (Research) in 2019 and later as the Director in 2021. He graduated from the University of Peradeniya in 1994 specializing in Geology, and then worked at the National Institute of Fundamental Studies (NIFS) as a Junior Researcher. After completing his MPhil degree at the University of Peradeniya in 1996, he joined the Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka as an academic. He has worked as a Lecturer and Senior Lecturer at the Department of Natural Resources of Sabaragamuwa University where an undergraduate degree in Environmental Science and Natural Resource Management was introduced for the first time in Sri Lanka. He held the Head position of the Department of Natural Resources of Sabaragamuwa University on two occasions. He obtained his PhD degree from the University of Berne, Switzerland specializing in Geomorphology and Earth Surface Geochemistry. He has received an Academic Fellowship from the Commonwealth Commission of the UK and a DAAD Fellowship from the German Federal Government to undertake postdoctoral studies in Scotland and Germany.

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Prof. Anoma Perera

Deputy-Director (Consultancy)

Anoma is a Professor of Botany (Cadre Chair), attached to the Department of Botany, University of Peradeniya. She has obtained the BSc Honours Degree in Botany from University of Peradeniya, MSc in Forest and Land Use Management from Oxford Forestry Institute, UK and the Doctoral Degree (DPhil) in Forest Ecology from University of Oxford, UK. She serves as a member of the IUCN Species Survival Commission: Western Ghats– Sri Lanka Plant Specialist Group since 2019, and as a member of the National Red-listing Group, Ministry of Environment, Sri Lanka since 2001. She has served as a member of the National Species Conservation Advisory Group, Ministry of Environment from 2001 to 2020, a member of the Biodiversity Task Force of the UNRED+ project of the Forest Department, Sri Lanka from 2013 -2016. She has also served as a short-term consultant for the Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Bogor, Indonesia on Tropical Secondary Forests in 2000 and as the National Biodiversity Consultant for the World Bank funded Ecosystem Conservation and Management project of the Forest Department, Sri Lanka, in 2018. With 30-year experience in teaching and conducting research in the field of Conservation Biology, she joined the CES team in 2022 as the Deputy Director (Consultancies) and is working to promote environmentally sustainable human actions, and to achieve environmentally enlightened and responsible society in Sri Lanka.

Website
Email: anomap@sci.pdn.ac.lk
Phone: (+94) 081 239 2679

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Dr. Nalin Gama-Arachchige

Deputy-Director (Research & Environmental Management)

Nalin is a senior lecturer attached to the Department of Botany, University of Peradeniya (UoP). He joined the Centre for Environmental Sustainability in 2021 as the Deputy-Director in research and environmental management. His background is primarily in plat science, with a BSc honors degree in Botany from University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka and a Biology PhD from University of Kentucky, USA. He serves in the committee for sustainability and Landscape Advisory Committee (LACO) of UoP, which are directly related to environmental sustainability at UoP. Further, he serves as the Editor-in-chief of the magazine CES BIOME. He is passionate about raising environmental awareness to conserve nature for our future generations and strongly believes that sustainable development is the only way forward for our(all life forms) survival.

Website
Email: nalin@sci.pdn.ac.lk
Phone: (+94) 077 666 9844

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Ms. Manjula Disanayaka

Administrative Officer

Website
Email: ces@gs.pdn.ac.lk
Phone: (+94) 071 9561065

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Mr. Asantha Rathnayake

Management Assistant

Website
Email: maduranga273@gmail.com
Phone: (+94) 081 239 2679

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