Professor Patrick Olivelle is an Indologist,  a philologist, and a scholar of Sanskrit Literature whose work has focused on asceticism, renunciation, and the dharma. He has been a Professor of Sanskrit and Indian Religions in the Department of Asian Studies at the University of Texas at Austin since 1991. In 2006, Professor Patrick Olivelle received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Sri Lanka Foundation International for his research and contributions to Indology and Religious Studies. He continues his research in Sanskrit, Ancient Indian religious history, and the history of the Idea of Dharma.  Since 2006, he has received the following Recognition and Awards: – 2020 Elected Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. – 2017 Prize of Foundation Colette Caillat of the Institut de France. – Conferred Honorary Degree, Doctor of Humane Letters, University of Chicago, June 11, 2016. – Career Research Excellence Award, The University of Texas
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Professor Lakshman Perera Samaranayake is currently an Emeritus Professor and a past Dean of Dentistry at the University of Hong Kong. He is also a Visiting-Professor, at the Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand, and four other universities including the University of Peradeniya, and Sri Jayawardhanapura University, Colombo. He has expertise in oral and medical microbiology, research (over 450 papers), and senior executive-level administration. He was the former Executive Dean of two major dental schools at the Universities of Hong Kong and Queensland, Australia. While at the Faculty of Dentistry at HKU, it was the top-ranked dental school in the world from 2014 to 2016. Professor Lakshman was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014 by the Sri Lanka Foundation International for being the first dental professional in Sri Lanka to receive the Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, and for his exceptional academic contributions
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Dr. Raj Barr-Kumarakulasinghe is an Award-winning Architect, Academic, Author, and Ardent Advocate for helping the under-served. Since receiving his Lifetime Achievement Award from SLF in 2014, Dr. Raj has continued his service as a member of the Council of Former American Institute of Architects (AIA) Presidents and officiates in the Investiture of new Fellows of the Institute and Inauguration of the new president each year. The program he initiated as National President of the AIA to create green pavilions to house the homeless in New Orleans, which had no homeless shelters, has continued every year since then. Now known as the Legacy Project, Dr. Raj’s call “to leave something of value in each National AIA convention host city, not just hot air and trash,” has helped improve schools, affordable housing, and infrastructure in each host city for over 27 years. Dr. Raj had watched the University of the District of
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Professor A.G Unil Perera, a Life Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS), Society of Photo-Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE), and a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IEEE) is a Regent’s Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Georgia State University (GSU). In 2012 he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Sri Lanka Foundation International for his research focus on developing novel multi-band, bias, and polarization selection photon detectors covering a wide range from Ultraviolet to Far Infrared (Terahertz). In 2014 Professor Unil was appointed Regents Professor of Physics and reappointed after 3 years and made a Permanent Regents Professor of Physics. In 2021, he was awarded the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Photonics Society Distinguished Lecturer Award renewed for the second year until 2022.More than 50 peer-reviewed journal articles out of 200+ and 10 (out of 14) US and other International Patents
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In 2016, the Sri Lanka Foundation awarded Professor Janaka Ruwanpura a Lifetime Achievement Award for his academic achievements. Professor Ruwanpura successfully completed two five-year terms as Vice-Provost International and three years of an added Associate Vice-President Research (International) position at the University of Calgary (UCalgary). He has been the longest-serving and most impactful senior International Officers of UCalgary for 11 years and 2 months. He is now on a two-year administrative leave as of April 2024 as an earned benefit of serving as a senior leadership team member at the University of Calgary, Canada. Professor Ruwanpura stated that since being appointed Vice-Provost International (VPI) in 2013, UCalgary has been on a transformative growth trajectory in global engagement. His leadership brought new and innovative programs and projects in academic, student mobility, and research dimensions. External recognition for UCalgary’s internationalization efforts under his leadership includes six excellence and innovation awards since 2016,
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In a city known for its award shows, the Sri Lanka Foundation organized an event to rival Hollywood’s best. The International Awards 2024 was held on Sunday April 21st at the Sheraton Universal Hotel Grand Ballroom; it was an all day affair celebrating a unique array of achievements that only the Sri Lankan diaspora could produce. Fifteen awardees were recognized for their outstanding contributions in fields ranging from medicine to science, engineering, philanthropy, and even table tennis! Rounding out the event were cultural performances, a silent auction, a fashion show, live music, and dancing. The International Awards 2024 began with a glamorous red carpet entrance. Traditional dress was the order of the day, and colorful sarees dazzled the eye in all directions. After special guests mingled and perused the silent auction, the ceremony began. The man behind it all, Founder Dr. Walter Jayasinghe, took the stage. He greeted the crowd
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Meet Outstanding Achievement Junior Award winner Tiana Kameel Piyadasa We are awarding Tiana Kameel Piyadasa because of her outstanding achievements in table tennis at such a young age. She is a tremendous athlete and a force to be reckoned with. Tiana Kameel Piyadasa was born in Pasadena, California, to Sri Lankan parents, Thilina Piyadasa and Rifkha Kameel. She is currently attending elementary school in Southern California. For the Kameel Piyadasa’s table tennis is a family tradition. Tiana’s father, Thilina, was a Sri Lankan national table tennis champion for 8 years and is a national-level coach for Team USA. Tiana’s mother, Rifkha, was also a national table tennis player in Sri Lanka. Tiana’s older sister, Tashiya, is a national table tennis champion. Tiana is already a fierce competitor at just ten years old! In 2021, when she was just eight years old, Tiana was the youngest table tennis player to represent
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Meet Outstanding Achievement Junior Award winner Tashiya Kameel Piyadasa We are awarding Tashiya Kameel Piyadasa because she is such a fierce competitor in table tennis. Her achievements at the national level are outstanding! Tashiya Kameel Piyadasa was born in Pasadena, California to Sri Lankan parents, Thilina Piyadasa and Rifkha Kameel. She is currently attending middle school in Southern California. Table Tennis clearly runs in her blood! Tashiya’s father, Thilina, was a Sri Lankan national table tennis champion for 8 years and is a national-level coach for Team USA. Tashiya’s mother, Rifkha, was also a national table tennis player in Sri Lanka. Tashiya’s younger sister, Tiana, is also a table tennis champion. Tashiya is the only Sri Lankan American to become a national champion in Table Tennis in the USA and represent the USA national Table Tennis team. In 2022, she won a gold medal at the 2022 US Open Table
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Meet Rising Star Award winner Sayuri P. Jinadasa, MD, MPH We are awarding Sayuri P. Jinadasa, MD, MPH, because of her contributions to the field of acute critical care and her impressive educational achievements. Her lengthy list of accomplishments at such an early stage in her career and her dedication to training the next generation of physicians is genuinely worthy of a Rising Star! Sayuri P. Jinadasa, MD, MPH, was born in Rahway, New Jersey, where her parents lived after they came to the United States from Sri Lanka. At the young age of five, she had already decided to become a physician. Her impressive educational accomplishments include three Ivy League degrees. She began with an undergraduate degree in chemistry from Princeton University in New Jersey, she then got her medical degree from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York, and lastly, she earned her Master’s of
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Meet Srimerican of the Year Award Winner Aruni Boteju We are awarding Aruni Boteju because of her work in creating the Ceylon International Film Festival, a film festival that shares Sri Lankan culture with the world. Her success in charitable causes has made an organizational and monetary impact in helping the U.S. and Sri Lanka. Aruni Boteju was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, and she is the oldest of three daughters of Manel and Ariyadasa Horanage. She attended Buddhist Ladies Collage, Colombo 7, which laid the foundation for her academic pursuits. In her teenage years, her family relocated to Santa Barbara, California. She continued her studies at Santa Barbara City College and subsequently achieved a bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of Phoenix. Aruni is the Founder and CEO of the Ceylon International Film Festival (CEYIFF). The CEYIFF is a non-profit arts and educational organization founded in 2021.
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