Professor Siril Wijesundara, Ph.D (CUNY), F.N.A.S. (S.L.), currently serves as a Research Professor at the National Institute of Fundamental Studies, Kandy. Previously, he held the position of Director General at the Department of National Botanic Gardens from 2006 to 2015. Professor Wijesundara earned his B.Sc. (Botany) and M.Phil. (Botany) degrees from the University of Peradeniya, followed by a Ph.D. in Biology from the City University of New York. With over 85 publications in scholarly journals, 120 abstracts and conference proceedings, 10 books, and 6 book chapters, he has made significant scholarly contributions, including chairing national committees and leading initiatives to establish botanic gardens in Sri Lanka.
Currently, he serves as a council member at SLTC Research University and has held various roles at the University of Peradeniya, including serving on councils and supervising Ph.D. students. Professor Wijesundara was elected a Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences (Sri Lanka) in 2006, holds an honorary professorship at the University of Hong Kong, and has received multiple Presidential Research Awards. He has also served as editor for international and national journals.