High Commissioner Yasoja Gunasekera visited the University of Canberra (UC) on 08 October 2026, to explore expanding academic, technological, and research partnerships between Sri Lanka and Australia.
During the visit, High Commissioner Gunasekera engaged with Hon. Bill Shorten, Vice Chancellor of the University of Canberra focusing on strengthening institutional links, collaborative research endeavours, and student exchange opportunities between Sri Lankan universities and the UC.
The High Commission delegation also visited the Collaborative Robotics Lab at the UC, a cutting-edge facility founded and led by Professor Damith Herath, an eminent Sri Lankan Australian academic.
A major highlight of the tour was the High Commission’s interaction with four Sri Lankan doctoral research scholars who are leading breakthrough technological projects within the lab. Buddhi Gamage’s research focuses on embodied artificial intelligence, cognitive robotics, and robot learning; Kalana Ratnayake’s research focuses on LLM based generative behaviour planning for social robots; Moniesha Thilakarathna is engaged in developing a multi-modal robotic grasping technique to classify inorganic materials found within organic waste; and Nipuni Wijesinghe’s work explores and enhances the interactions between humans and robotic systems, particularly in healthcare settings.
Sri Lankan doctoral students leading projects at the intersection of AI, sustainability, psychology, and robotics at the Collaborative Robotics Lab is testament to Sri Lankan intellectual power and talent, making a direct impact on global scientific innovation.
The High Commission of Sri Lanka to Australia
Canberra
09 October 2026
