The Faculty of Agricultural Sciences of Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka is one of the leading agriculture faculties in the country. It offers two-degree programs; BSc (Hons) in Agricultural Sciences and Management and BSc (Hons) in Food Business Management. The faculty is comprised of three academic departments namely Agribusiness Management, Export Agriculture, and Livestock Production. The academic staff of the faculty is well qualified and honored for their exceptional skills and experience in their respective academic and research fields.
The undergraduate academic program of the faculty is delivered through six specialization modules viz. agribusiness management, food business management, crop production technology, agri-environment resource management, crop improvement and plant protection, animal bio-resource technology and management, and aquatic bio-resource technology and management. An important component of the curriculum of the faculty is the research by undergraduates in a selected specialization aiming at developing research and development skills of final year students and in instilling a strong research foundation in young undergraduates. A research thesis should be produced at the end of the program, and should be presented and defended by the respective student in front of an examination committee appointed by the relevant department. Another significant component of the program is the industrial training placement during which students gain a practical exposure to the industry. Both these components are completed during their final year of the undergraduate program.
Developing a research culture requires open and collaborative relationships among academia, scientists, students and related industries. Such relationships can generate new knowledge and solutions for the real industrial needs while enhancing the research skills of the undergraduates. As with any other activity, knowledge dissemination is a must and symposia are the most appropriate media to achieve this objective. The Undergraduate Research Symposium of the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka (AgSURS-2023), an important milestone of the faculty, which was initiated in 2022 according to a concept and guidance by the Dean of the faculty, Professor P M A S Karunaratne with the aim of establishing a platform to publicize research work conducted by the undergraduates during their final year research projects to a wider audience.
The AgSURS 2023 is going to be held for the second consecutive time on 16th February 2023. The symposium is aimed at bringing together the undergraduate researchers of the faculty from different agricultural disciplines to a common platform under the theme ‘Explore the World through Research and Innovation’. This symposium offers a scientific and an industrial forum for the students to present and discuss their research projects that they worked on in their final year and the respective research findings. All the research abstracts submitted by the students to the symposium are peer reviewed and will be published in the symposium proceedings.
The AgSURS-2023 symposium is a great platform to be aware about all the outstanding projects completed by undergraduate students and this is also a great opportunity for them to showcase their talents, knowledge and skills to a wider research community. The symposium will commence with a keynote speech, then flows into panels of research finding presentations and discussions, followed by fellowship events. We are privileged to have Professor H M S K Herath, Dean, Faculty of Animal Science and Export Agriculture, Uwa Wellassa University of Sri Lanka as the keynote speaker of the AgSURS-2023. Renowned scientists from different agricultural and allied disciplines are invited to lead the panels of research presentations and the discussions. Dignitaries from related industries will also be invited to the symposium aiming at networking within the industry and developing research careers of the undergraduates. The AgSURS-2023 symposium will be held in hybrid mode to facilitate the participation from every corner of the country, and the event will be live streamed on social media network with the aim of facilitating real-time engagement of wider audience. Pre-symposium workshops on effective tips and skills on scientific presentation were organized by the organizing committee to develop the research skills of students; thesis writing; and research project presentations in line with the AgSURS-2023. These pre-symposium workshops were conducted in the month of December 2022.
Thematic areas of AgSURS-2023
- Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness Management
- Agri-Environment Modelling
- Agronomy and Soil Sciences
- Livestock Production and Food Safety
- Plant Breeding and Biotechnology
- Plant Protection
- Food Processing and Post-Harvest Technology
The organizing committee of AgSURS-2023 symposium is led by Dr R M Amila S Bandara as the Symposium Chair with untiring efforts of Mr G A H Galahitigama (Symposium Coordinator), Ms P W M Tharindi and Mr S Sellapperuma (Symposium Secretaries). Moreover, Prof M L M C Dissanayake, Prof. D M A Gunaratne, Prof. G D K Kumara and Dr. D D Wickramanayake are the Chairs of Scientific Committee, Publications Committee, Logistics Committee and Finance Committee respectively. The organizing committee is immensely grateful to AVON Pharmo Chem (Pvt) Ltd. for considering the sponsorship proposal for AgSURS-2023 symposium. The AgSURS-2023 is deeply honored to have AVON Pharmo Chem (Pvt) Ltd. as its key partner.
