Multidisciplinary research essential: Chancellor Wayamba University
Research should not be individualistic but should be multidisciplinary said Emeritus Professor Tuley de Silva, Chancellor of the Wayamba University.
He said the role of research in a university in Sri Lanka for the 21st century should be to make it a vital centre of competence to deal with social challenges and drive economic growth.
“This requires the administrators to ensure a stable environment of funding for longterm strategic partnerships, provide the university the autonomy to operate effectively and form strong partnerships and strive for excellence as companies want to work with the best,” he said.
Professor de Silva was d e l ivering the keynote address at the international research sessions of the Peradeniya University where nearly 504 research papers were presented.
The 1995 Green Paper on innovation defines it “as the renewal and enlargement of the range of products and services and associated markets, the establishment of new methods of production, supply and distribution, the introduction of changes in management, work organisation, and the working conditions and skills of the workforce".
The sessions were held at the Allied Health Science faculty presided by Chancellor Kingsley M. de Silva of the University of Peradeniya in association with the Vice Chancellor of the University Professor Upul B. Disssanayake, Deputy Vice Chancellor Professor Lakshman Wijeweera and the Dean of the Faculty Professor Mahinda Wickremaratne.
Professor Tuley de Silva said that he wished to share his experiences of the past fifty years in varied capacities as a researcher, development researcher, project proposal writer and principal investigator, national and international project manager, project proposal reviewer and evaluator, research paper referee of journals, postgraduate thesis examiner and research and development consultant so that fellow scientists who were gathered could benefit, in order to be partners in the development process to contribute to national development.