Prof.

K. S. Lasith Gunawardena

Orchid ID 0000-0002-2495-4103

Professor

Department of Information Technology

lasith@sjp.ac.lk

BIO

Professor K. S. Lasith Gunawardena is a Sri Lankan academic, technology leader, and policy contributor whose work focuses on advancing the responsible and inclusive use of digital technologies in research, education, industry, and government. Through leadership roles in academia, international governance, and national policy initiatives, he contributes to strengthening the foundations that enable trusted digital ecosystems and innovation-driven development.

He serves on the Board of Directors of ORCID Inc. as one of only two elected Researcher-Directors globally and is Co-Chair of the ORCID Researcher Advisory Council. In these roles, he contributes to the governance and strategic direction of a global infrastructure supporting millions of researchers and thousands of institutions worldwide.

A Fellow of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, and a Senior Member of both IEEE and ACM, he is an elected member of the BCS UK Council (2026–2029) and serves as the 30th Chairman of the BCS Sri Lanka Section. He previously chaired the IEEE Computer Society Sri Lanka Chapter and continues to support the advancement of the computing profession through leadership, mentoring, and community engagement.

Professor Gunawardena has served in several academic leadership positions, including Head of the Department of Information Technology (2023-26) and Co Chair of the Innovation Invention and Venture Creation Council (2022-Todate). Over a career spanning more than 26 years, he has taught and mentored over 10,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students.

His national contributions include serving on Sri Lanka's Digital Transformation of Education Taskforce and the UGC National AI Policy Framework for State Universities Committee. He has also served as Chief Judge of Sri Lanka's National ICT Awards (NBQSA) and has participated as a judge in numerous national and international ICT and innovation competitions since 2006.

TEACHING INTERESTS

  • ICT Infrastructure
  • Cloud Technologies
  • Information Systems
  • Digital Transformation
  • Artificial Intelligence and Society
  • Research Methods and Research Data Management
  • Information Security
  • IT Governance
  • Innovation and Entrepreneurship
  • Professional Skills Development
  • Emerging Technologies

RESEARCH INTERESTS

  • Research Data Management
  • Research Information Systems
  • Open Science and Scholarly Communication
  • Artificial Intelligence in Education
  • Human–Computer Interaction
  • Information Systems
  • Information Security and Privacy
  • E-Governance
  • Digital Identity and Trust Frameworks
  • Technology Adoption and Digital Transformation
  • Gesture Recognition using Sensor Technologies
  • Educational Technologies

ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS

  • Doctor of Engineering (Information Systems Engineering), Shimane University, Japan (2016)
  • Advanced Computing, University of Colombo School of Computing, Sri Lanka (2009)
  • Physical Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka (1999)

AWARDS & HONOURS

  • ICT Educator of the Year (Awarded at National IT Conference) 2023
    Awarded by Computer Society of Sri Lanka

PUBLICATIONS

Conference Paper

Cybersecurity for Cloud-Based IoT Devices: Views from IT Professionals

2025-02-19

Conference Paper

Investigating the potential of Blockchain to enhance Customer Data Privacy in the Banking Sector of Sri Lanka

2025-02-18

Journal Article

Unveiling University Networks Aligning with SDGS: a Social Network Analysis of the National Innovation System of Sri Lanka

2025 Journal of Lifestyle and SDGs Review

Weerasinghe, Rukmal Nishantha and Gunawardena, KS Lasith

Journal Article

Bridging Academia and Enterprise: A Framework for Collaborative Success

2024/11 Journal of the Knowledge Economy

Rebeka C. Tucker, Sarita J. Robinson, Champika L. Liyanage, Leah Amor Fernandez, Proceso L. Jr., Cortez, Darryl Roy Montebon, Sarintip Tantanee, Sorraya Khiewnavawongsa, Nida Chaimoon, K. D. N. Weerasinghe, Lasith Gunawardena, Ranjith Dissanayake

Journal Article

Bridging Academia and Enterprise: A Framework for Collaborative Success

2024-01-01 Journal of the Knowledge Economy

Journal Article

Bridging Academia and Enterprise: A Framework for Collaborative Success

2024 Journal of the Knowledge Economy

Tucker, Rebeka C. and Robinson, Sarita J. and Liyanage, Champika L. and Fernandez, Proceso L. Jr., Cortez, Leah Amor and Montebon, Darryl Roy and Tantanee, Sarintip and Khiewnavawongsa, Sorraya and Chaimoon, Nida and Weerasinghe, K. D. N. and Gunawardena, Lasith and others

Conference Paper

Assessing the Awareness and Adoption of NFT Technology Among Sri Lankan Digital Artists

2023-09-21

Conference Paper

The Last Mile Problem: Determining the Commuters' Willingness and Demand Preferences towards Micromobility Solutions in Sri Lanka

2023-03-19

Journal Article

Barriers to Full Participation in the Open Science Life Cycle among Early Career Researchers

2022-01-19 Data Science Journal

Journal Article

Barriers to Full Participation in the Open Science Life Cycle among Early Career Researchers

2022 Data Science Journal

Gownaris, NJ and Vermeir, K and Bittner, M-I and Gunawardena, L and Kaur-Ghumaan, S and Lepenies, R and Ntsefong, GN and Zakari, IS.

Journal Article

Utilization of E-Government Services: A study of the Citizens in Colombo Municipal Council Area, Sri Lanka

2022 Integrated Journal for Research in Arts and Humanities

Withanage, U.P.A. and Gunawardena, Lasith and Endagamage, Dileepa M.

Journal Article

Barriers to Full Participation in the Open Science Life Cycle among Early Career Researchers

2022 Data Science Journal

Gownaris, NJ and Vermeir, K and Bittner, M-I and Gunawardena, L and Kaur-Ghumaan, S and Lepenies, R and Ntsefong, GN and Zakari, IS.

Conference Paper

A Framework for IoT-Enabled Smart Washrooms

2021-10-12

Conference Paper

An investigation on factors influencing for turn-away of IT professionals in Sri Lanka

2021-06-19

Conference Paper

Plagiarism detection software: perspectives from academic staff

2020-06-27

Journal Article

Potential for Improving Public Services by Exploring Citizens' Communication to Public Organizations

2019-01-01 Communications in Computer and Information Science

Book

Potential for improving public services by exploring citizens’ communication to public organizations

2019-01-01 Communications in Computer and Information Science

Conference Paper

Flipped Classrooms Using Social Networks: An Investigation on Learning Styles

2018-01-01

Journal Article

Detecting learning styles in learning management systems using data mining

2016-01-01 Journal of Information Processing

Journal Article

Detecting Learning Styles in Learning Management Systems Using Data Mining

2016 Journal of Information Processing

Pitigala Liyanage, Madura Prabhani and Gunawardena, K.S. Lasith and Hirakawa, Masahito

Journal Article

GestureTank: A gesture detection water vessel for foot movements

2015-01-01 International Journal on Advances in ICT for Emerging Regions

Journal Article

GestureTank: A gesture detection water vessel for foot movements

2015 International Journal on Advances in ICT for Emerging Regions

Gunawardena, K.S.L. and Hirakawa, Masahito

Journal Article

SensorTank: An Interactive Water Vessel

2014-01-01 Journal of Information Processing

Journal Article

Using Learning Styles to Enhance Learning Management Systems

2014-01-01 International Journal on Advances in ICT for Emerging Regions (ICTer)

Journal Article

SensorTank: An Interactive Water Vessel

2014 Journal of Information Processing

Gunawardena, K.S. Lasith and Kimura, Koki and Hirakawa, Masahito

Journal Article

Using Learning Styles to Enhance Learning Management Systems

2014 International Journal on Advances in ICT for Emerging Regions (ICTer)

Pitigala Liyanage, M Prabhani and Gunawardena, K.S. Lasith and Hirakawa, Masahito

Conference Paper

SensorTank: An Interactive Water Vessel

2014 Proceedings of the 10th Asia Pacific Conference on Computer Human Interaction (apCHI’12)

Gunawardena, K.S. Lasith and Kimura, Koki and Hirakawa, Masahito

Journal Article

Using Learning Styles to Enhance Learning Management Systems

2014 International Journal on Advances in ICT for Emerging Regions (ICTer)

Pitigala Liyanage, M Prabhani and Gunawardena, K.S. Lasith and Hirakawa, Masahito

Conference Paper

A Framework for Adaptive Learning Management Systems using Learning Style

2013-01-01

Conference Paper

SensorTank: A water vessel for interaction

2012-01-01

Conference Paper

Development of a Live Virtual Classroom Environment for Blended Learning

2008-01-01

Conference Paper

Addressing Large Student Groups via Blended Learning Approach-Lessons Learnt and Experiences from Sri Lanka

2007-01-01

Conference Paper

Delivery of blended learning for mastering application packages

2007-01-01

Journal Article

Addressing Large Student Groups via Blended Learning Approach-Lessons Learnt and Experiences from Sri Lanka

2007 International Journal of The Computer, The Internet and Management

Gunawardena, K.S.Lasith and Hewagamage, KP

Administrative Assignments

Coordinator - IT Resouce Centre (FMSC) - Coordinator

2003.01.01 - 2006.12.31

Coordinator - ITRC, FMSC

General Secretary - Innovation Invention and Venture Creation Council - General Secretary - Innovation Invention and Venture Creation Council

2018.01.01 - 2021.12.31

Leading the IIVCC

Co-Chair IIVCC - Co-Chair IIVCC

2022.01.01 - Up to now

Co-Chair IIVCC

MEDIA APPEARANCES

News Paper

Strengthening cybersecurity is crucial for State sector - The Sunday Morning Newspaper

2025.06.22 https://www.themorning.lk/articles/6KfzgcEcM4TcmiYjl8LX

Strengthening cybersecurity is crucial for State sector

Contact Us

Department of Information Technology
Faculty of Management Studies and Commerce
University of Sri Jayewardenepura
Gangodawila
Nugegoda (10250)
Sri Lanka

Phone: +94 112 802 069,  Fax: +94 112 803653

Email: office.it@sjp.ac.lk

Find Us

Follow Us

TOP
//www.googleadservices.com/pagead/conversion.js