I earned my Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture (special) from the Faculty of Agriculture, Rajarata University of Sri Lanka (RUSL). I have specialized in Agricultural Engineering and I obtained expertise in areas such as environmental science, waste management, climate change, Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM), irrigation, and water management under the Department of Agricultural Engineering.
My final year dissertation was ‘Water Pollution and Water Quality Assessment of Mihintale Tank’, and at that time, less water quality had became a serious problem in the area. Water samples were taken from the Mihintale tank area, water contamination parameters were tested, the perception of the people around the tank was sought and suggestions were made.
Moreover, I have a vast experience in engaging with extracurricular and volunteering activities. Among them, the inauguration of the Malwathuoya Conservation Guild as the founding President was a significant milestone of my career. The Malwathuoya, which is the second-longest river in Sri Lanka, and various projects were carried out to protect its catchment area. For these projects, the research focused mainly on the Anuradhapura city limits, which have been identified as the highest pollution zone in Malwathuoya. The main objective of the Malwathuoya Conservation Guild was to develop the Malwathuoya and its catchment area in a sustainable manner and to reduce environmental pollution. Also, Malwathuoya Conservation Guild initiated a cleanup and environment protection program in Sripada (Adam’s Peak), which is a very sacred place for all religions and cultures in Sri Lanka. It was the largest environmental project undertaken by a university in Sri Lanka in association with Sripada waste management.
Soon after my degree completion, I started working as a Research Assistant on several research projects, the first was from April 2020 to October 2020. The project name was ‘A Historical and Ethno-Archaeological Study on Ancient Food Culture and Farming Systems in Nuwara Kalaviya, Sri Lanka’, conducted by the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Rajarata University of Sri Lanka.
After that, I worked as a Research Assistant attached to a research project, titled ‘Generating Evidence for Ending Preventable Maternal Deaths (GEEPMD)’, Maternal and Child Health Research Unit, Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Allied Science, Rajarata University of Sri Lanka. The major task involved with this position which worked on the Social Science Components (HEMS) of the project, developed the HEMS aspect. This project increased my consent and interest in qualitative research and also gained special expertise in qualitative data analysis.
At the moment, I’m working as a Research Assistant in the ECLIPSE and I’m looking forward to giving my full strength and capacity to reinforce the ECLIPSE!