Academic Staff Members/Ms. K.K.K. Sylva
Ms. K.K.K. Sylva
Senior Lecturer
Biography:
K. K. K. Sylva is having 20 years of experience in teaching at both undergraduate and postgraduate level. She was attached to the University of Ruhuna at the inception of the Faculty of Engineering in 2000 and served there for 11 years. She was working as a visiting lecturer for the University of Peradeniya during this period. She joined the University of Peradeniya as a permanent member in 2014. Memoir of her life is to cater for the development of young professionals; especially in the areas of communication and soft, transferable skills and to enhance their capabilities in meeting the complex challenges of the modern society they serve. She contributes to the area of sustainable development by volunteering to serve in the Green Building Council of Sri Lanka in their activities and carrying out research in the area of sustainability.
Career Profile:
2014 –To date: Senior Lecturer, Department of Engineering Management, Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka Head of the Department from November 2019 to November 2024
2000 – 2011: Lecturer, Department of Interdisciplinary Studies, Faculty of Engineering, University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka
1998 – 1999: Civil Engineer (Planning and scheduling)
LAN Management Service (Pvt.) Ltd, Sri Lanka >br> Prepared work programs for project management using PRIMAVERA and SURETRACK project planner packages, monitored projects, carried out cost controlling, prepared bills of quantities, participated in tender evaluations and prepared scope of work for geotechnical investigations. Significant projects involved: Ambuja Cement-storage and bagging facilities at the port of Galle.
1996 – 1997: Scientist, National Building Research Organization (NBRO), Sri Lanka
Planning, coordinating, directing and controlling geotechnical investigations and designs. Major projects: Colombo-Katunayake expressway – soil investigation and design of road embankments; Coal-fired thermal power plant of Kalpitiya – off-shore geotechnical investigating; Berths at the port of Colombo – off-shore geotechnical investigations. Responsible for supervising field investigations, reporting investigation results and recommending suitable foundation types in general construction consultancies.
Coordinated research project – 3D Geotechnical Mapping of Colombo Metropolitan Area.
1995 – 1996: Civil Engineer, International Blaster, Bagna, Bangkok, Thailand
Carried out designs involving road projects (tunnelling), and a blasting design for a sculpture of Buddha, mainly using AutoCAD.
Was responsible for preparing necessary design drawings for field officers. Prepared bills of quantities and carried out cost control..
Educational Qualifications:
M.Sc. (Energy Systems), University of Gävle, Sweden, 2013
Thesis: Modelling of EOE Pereira Auditorium
Modeling and Optimization of Energy Utilization of Air Ventilation System of an Auditorium
MBA, Post Graduate Institute of Management, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka. 2013
M.Eng. (Geotechnical Engineering), Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), 1995
B.Sc. Eng. (Hons) (Civil Engineering), University of Peradeniya, 1992
Other Involvements:
Student counselor, Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya from 2014 to 2015
Career Guidance Advisor, Faculty of Engineering, University of Ruhuna from 2001 to 2007
Student counselor, Faculty of Engineering, University of Ruhuna from 2000 to 2005 and from 2009 to 2010
Appointments (Selected) :
Senior Lecturer, Department of Engineering Management, Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka (2014 – To date)
Head of the Department Engineering Management, Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. (November 2019 – November 2024)
Lecturer, Department of Interdisciplinary Studies,Faculty of Engineering, University of Ruhuna (2000-2011)
Civil Engineer (Planning and scheduling), LAN Management Service (Pvt.) Ltd (1998 – 2000)
Scientist, National Building Research Organization (NBRO) (1996-1998)
Civil Engineer, International Blaster, Bagna, Bangkok, Thailand (1995-1996)
Administrative Activities:
Deputy Director (Research and Environmental Management), Centre for Environmental Sustainability (CES), University of Peradeniya (UOP), Sri Lanka from December 2024 to date.
Head of the Department – Department of Engineering Management, Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya from November 2018 to November 2024.
Postgraduate Coordinator – Postgraduate Programme in Construction and Project Management from December 2015 to December 2018.
Associations and other Memberships of Bodies:
Committee Member – Alumni Association of the University of Peradeniya (AAUP)– 2016/2017
Treasurer – Engineering Faculty Teachers’ Union (EFUTA) – 2015 and 2016
Accredited Professional of the Green Building Council of Sri Lanka – from 2016
ProSPER.Net:Expert Advisory Panel on Circular Economy from 2023
Contribution to Internationally funded Projects:
CABRET: Capacity Building in Asia for Resilience EducaTion
Participated as an invitee for national and international workshops and contributed to the areas of management.
INNOTAL (586227-EPP-1-2017-1-BG-EPPKA2-CBHE-JP (2017-3067/001-001)
Integrating Talent Development into Innovation Ecosystems in Higher Education
The INNOTAL project (KA2- Capacity Building in the Field of Higher Education) is a multinational European Union (EU) funded project initiated by the International Affairs Office of the University. Contributed to supporting internal and external workshops, report writing.
EUSL-Energy (610173-EPP-1-2019-1-LK-EPPKA2-CBHE-JP)
Erasmus funded Europe Sri Lanka Capacity Building in Energy Circular Economy. On going project. Contributing in the development of an online Master’s Degree Program to be offered by four Sri Lankan Universities.
ProSPER.NET: Circular Economy Integration for Sustainable Built Environment Education”
Lead by RMIT University (Lead), a collaboration of the University of Peradeniya, Arabaev Kyrgyz State University, Asian Institute of Technology, and TERI School of Advanced Studies
Committees:
Faculty of Engineering
2015 to 2017: Board Secretary – Board of Studies of the General Programme (BOSGP)
2014 to 2019: Career Fair – Organizing Committee Member
2018 to 2019: Career Fair – Organizing Committee Member
2019 to 2025: Coordinator Criteria 1 – SLQF Accreditation process of the degree programme in Engineering at the Faculty of Engineering
2019 to 2024: Participating in all committees where HOD has to represent the department
2019: Examination Disciplinary Committee – End of Semester Examination – November 2019
2020: Committee for Developing guidelines/scheme for academic staff awards
2020: Faculty Board-appointed Task Force to study the feasibility of calling undergraduate students to the Faculty
2021 to 2024: Ethical Review Committee, Faculty of Engineering (Convener from 2022 to 2024)
University of Peradeniya
2014, 2015, 2016 and 2019: Senior Student Counsellor
2014, 2015: Committee Member General Convocation
2015, 2016, 2025: iPurse – Organizing Committee member
2016: Career guidance Advisory Board (CGAB)
2016: Committee on Implementation of Eco-Campus Concepts -ISO14001
2016Nominee for the Academic Pool for Sustainable Development
Other Involvements:
Student counselor, Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya from 2014 to 2015
Career Guidance Advisor, Faculty of Engineering, University of Ruhuna from 2001 to 2007
Education/Adult Education
Research Interests:
Sustainability and Sustainable Economies: Green/Circular
Engineering Management/Leadership/Entrepreneurship/CSR
Resilient and Sustainable Communities/Cities for Disaster Mitigation
Education/Adult Education
Publications:
Sylva, K. K. K., Kithsiri, U. G., Bogahawatta, S., Senanayake, N. S., and Abeyweera, R., 2014. Dendro Power Generation in Sri Lanka – Successes, Failures and Policies. SLEMA, V17(2), pp:20-26.
Sylva, K. K. K., 2016. Modeling and Optimization of Energy Utilization of Air Ventilation System of an Auditorium. Independent Thesis Advanced level (degree of Master -Two Years), University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building, Energy and Environmental Engineering, Energy system. OUSL (KTH)
Kumara, A. R. W. M. M. N. R., Vitharana, M. V. D. L, and Sylva, K. K. K., 2016. A comprehensive guideline for selecting building materials for a sustainable built environment: an approach through life cycle analysis. In: 7th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment, Kandy, Sri Lanka, December 16 – 18, 2016.
Thennakoon, T.M.C.Y., Nawarathna, N. M. H. B. and Sylva, K. K. K., 2017. A circular economic model for construction industry waste management. In: 8th International Conference on Structural Engineering and Construction Management, Kandy, Sri Lanka, December 7 – 10, 2017.
Pallekumbura, P.K.W.A.S.K., Bandara, B.G.A.S. and Sylva, K. K. K., 2017. A model for the application of triple-p concept in management of public buildings and infrastructure for sustainability. In: 8th International Conference on Structural Engineering and Construction Management, Kandy, Sri Lanka, December 7 – 10, 2017.
Herath, H. M.U. R., Gomes, T. K. and Sylva, K. K. K., 2017. A preliminary user guide for comparison of green building material alternatives through life cycle analysis. In: 8th International Conference on Structural Engineering and Construction Management, Kandy, Sri Lanka, December 7 – 10, 2017.
Sylva K.K.K. (2018) A Circular Economic Model for a Sustainable City in South Asia. International Conference on Sustainable Development Research in the Asia-Pacific, SDRAP 2017, Melbourne, Australia. July 25-28, 2017.
Somachandra, V. and Sylva, K., 2017. Ethical management practice”, as a CSR tool to ensure the corporate sustainability of construction industry: a conceptual review. In: international conference on technology management (INCOTEM), Moratuwa, Sri Lanka.
Herath, H. M.U. R., Sylva, K. K. K., and Dissanayake, P. B. R., 2018. Performance of fly-ash based light weight concrete block: A case study on selection of green building material related to contextual considerations. 9th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment (ICSBE), Kandy, Sri Lanka, December 13 – 15, 2018.
Niroshana, W. V. N., Dissanayaka D. D. J. K., and Sylva, K. K. K., 2018. Land-use planning model: a case study on business improvement district (BID). In: 9th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment (ICSBE), Kandy, Sri Lanka, December 13 – 15, 2018.
Udapitiya, G.A.M.A.S.B., Rathnayake, R.M.T. and Sylva, K. K. K., 2018. Transit-oriented development (TOD) – verification of application possibilities in Sri Lanka. In: 9th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment (ICSBE), Kandy, Sri Lanka, December 13 – 15, 2018.
Somachandra W. D. I. V., Sylva K. K. K., and Dissanayake, P. B. R., 2018. Business process CSR towards sustainability: contribution of the client organizations of construction industry. In: 9th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment (ICSBE), Kandy, Sri Lanka, December 13 – 15, 2018.
Hippola, H. M. S. S., Jayasooriya, E. M. S. D., Jayasiri, G. P., Randil, C., Perera, C., Sylva, K. K. K., Kulathunga, A. K., Bandara, C. S., Siriwardena, C. S. A. and Dissanayake, P. B. R., 2020. Gap Assessment of Warning and Dissemination Process of Early Warning System in Coastal Areas of Sri Lanka. In: 9th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment (ICSBE), Kandy, Sri Lanka, December 13 – 15, 2018.
Jayasooriya, E. M. S. D., Hippola. H. M. S. S., Bandara, C. S., Kulathunga, A. K., Sylva, K. K. K., Dissanayake, P. B. R., Jayasiri, G. P., Randil, C., Perera, C. and Siriwardana, C. S. A., 2020. Gaps in the Evacuation of People with Special Needs During Coastal Disasters in Sri Lanka. In: 9th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment (ICSBE), Kandy, Sri Lanka, December 13 – 15, 2018.
Somachandra, V., Sylva, K., and Dissanayake, R., 2018. Construction industry focus towards sustainability through corporate social responsibility. In: international Conference on Disaster Management (ICDM), Padang, Indonesia, May 2 – 4, 2018.
Somachandra W.D.I.V., Sylva K.K.K. and Dissanayake P.B.R., 2019. Strengthening Sustainability in Sri Lankan Construction Industry: Through Corporate Social Responsibility. International Conference on Sustainable Development Research the Asia-Pacific, SDRAP 2019, Gwalior, lndia. December 19-21, 2019.
Sylva, K. K. K. and Sylva, K. K. L. A., 2019. Sustainable City Planning and Management Strategies in Vernacular Settlement Patterns in Sri Lanka. International Conference on sustainable Development Research in the Asia-Pacific, SDRAP 2019, Gwalior, India. December 19-21, 2019
Sylva, K. K. K., 2019. Public-Private-Partnership in Disaster Risk Management. International conference on Capacity building for research and innovation in disaster resilience. Colombo, Sri Lanka, January 14-18, 2019.
Weerasekara, W.M.S.N., Sylva K.K.K., Dissanayaka, S.M. (2023) Sustainable Construction of Transport Connectivity and Asset Management Project, Sri Lanka, The 14th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment. 15 – 17 December 2023, Kandy, Sri Lanka, pp.256.
Wadugodapitiya, R.R.M.M.K., Sylva K.K.K., Dissanayaka, S.M. (2023) Flexibility to Incorporate Circular Economic Practices within Built Environment Procurement Contracts in Sri Lanka, The 14th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment. 15 – 17 December 2023, Kandy, Sri Lanka, pp.110.
Edited Book chapters and journal papers
Sylva K.K.K. (2018) A Circular Economic Model for a Sustainable City in South Asia. In: Leal Filho W., Rogers J., Iyer-Raniga U. (eds) Sustainable Development Research in the Asia-Pacific Region. World Sustainability Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-73293-0_20
Jayasooriya, E. M. S. D., Hippola. H. M. S. S., Bandara, C. S., Kulathunga, A. K., Sylva, K. K. K., Dissanayake, P. B. R., Jayasiri, G. P., Randil, C., Perera, C. and Siriwardana, C. S. A., 2020. Gaps in the Evacuation of People with Special Needs During Coastal Disasters in Sri Lanka. In: Dissanayake R., Mendis P. (eds) ICSBE 2018. ICSBE 2018. Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, vol 44. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-9749-3_5
Hippola, H. M. S. S., Jayasooriya, E. M. S. D., Jayasiri, G. P., Randil, C., Perera, C., Sylva, K. K. K., Kulathunga, A. K., Bandara, C. S., Siriwardena, C. S. A. and Dissanayake, P. B. R., 2020. Gap Assessment of Warning and Dissemination Process of Early Warning System in Coastal Areas of Sri Lanka. In: Dissanayake R., Mendis P. (eds) ICSBE 2018. ICSBE 2018. Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, vol 44. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-9749-3_4
Udapitiya G.A.M.A.S.B., Rathnayake R.M.T., Sylva K.K.K., 2020. Land-Use Planning Model: A Case Study on Transit-Oriented Development (TOD). In: Dissanayake R., Mendis P. (eds) ICSBE 2018. Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, vol 44. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-9749-3_17
Sylva, K. K., 2020. A Value for the Non-Valued: Valuation of Ecosystem Resources. In S. Patti, & G. Trizzino (Eds.), Advanced Integrated Approaches to Environmental Economics and Policy: Emerging Research and Opportunities (pp. 49-70). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-9562-5.ch003
Sylva K., 2020. Proficiency for Assessment in Quality Education: Internalization of Values of Sustainability. In: Leal Filho W., Azul A.M., Brandli L., Özuyar P.G., Wall T. (eds) Quality Education. Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-95870-5_73
Sylva. K, 2020. Paradigms of Poverty: Concepts and Causes. In: Leal Filho W., Azul A., Brandli L., Lange Salvia A., Özuyar P., Wall T. (eds) No Poverty. Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69625-6_78-1
Sylva K., 2020. Global Policy-Making Process of Inequality Reduction: Equalities and Non-equalities of Inequality. In: Leal Filho W., Azul A., Brandli L., Özuyar P., Wall T. (eds) Reduced Inequalities. Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71060-0_50-1
Sylva K., 2020. Regulatory Paradigm Shift for Social Peace and Justice. In: Leal Filho W., Azul A.M., Brandli L., Lange Salvia A., Özuyar P.G., Wall T. (eds) Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71066-2_59-1
Somachandra, W. D. I. V., Sylva, K. K. K., Bandara C. S. and Dissanayake P. B. R., 2022. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices in the construction industry of Sri Lanka, International Journal of Construction Management, DOI: 10.1080/15623599.2022.2049489
Sylva, K., Iyer‐Raniga, U., 2023. Partnership in the Built Environment for Realizing the 2030 Agenda: A Soft Systems Model Incorporating Systems Theory and the Circular Economy. In: Walker, T., Cucuzzella, C., Goubran, S., Geith, R. (eds) The Role of Design, Construction, and Real Estate in Advancing the Sustainable Development Goals. Sustainable Development Goals Series. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-28739-8_9
Ho, O., Iyer-Raniga, U., Sadykova, C., Balasooriya, M., Sylva, K., Dissanayaka, M., Sukwanchai, K., Pal, I., Bhatia, A., Jain, D., and Sivapalan, S., 2024. A conceptual model for integrating circular economy in the built environment: An analysis of literature and local-based case studies. Journal of Cleaner Production, ISSN 0959-6526. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.141516.
Ho, O., Iyer-Raniga, U., Sylva, K., Sivapalan, S., Dissanayaka, S. M., & Sadykova, C. (2024). Circular economy education: student feedback from five higher education institutions in the Asia Pacific. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijshe-07-2023-0292
Sylva, K., Ho, O., Iyer-Raniga, U., Dissanayaka, M., Sivapalan, S. (2025). Facilitation of the Internalization Process of Circular Economic Concepts in Students Through Quality Education: Use of Case Studies in Teaching. In: Leal Filho, W., Gasparetto Rebelatto, B., Annelin, A., Boström, GO. (eds) Competence Building in Sustainable Development. World Sustainability Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-80380-2_12 .
Sylva, K.K.K., Shanthini, R. (2024). Higher Order Circularity Strategies in Wastewater Treatment: A Case Study from Vernacular Settlements of Sri Lanka. In: Yadav, S., Ghangrekar, M.M., Yadava, R.N. (eds) Emerging Technologies in Biological and Hybrid Wastewater Treatment: Lessons from Developed to Enhancing Practices in Developing Countries. Earth and Environmental Sciences Library. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-74515-7_14
Kumarasinghe, K.A.G.G.K., Sylva, K.K.K. (2024). Resource Management in Irrigation Projects of Sri Lanka Using Principles of Circular Economy. In: Dissanayake, R., et al. Proceedings of the 14th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment. ICSBE 2023. Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, vol 517. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-3737-6_29
Balasooriya, B.M.M.I., Sylva, K.K.K. (2024). Application of Circular Economic Concepts at Construction Waste Management (Cowam) Project, Dadalla, Sri Lanka. In: Dissanayake, R., et al. Proceedings of the 14th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment. ICSBE 2023. Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, vol 517. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-3737-6_30
Khajuria, A., Verma, P., Vella, A., Zanini-Freitag, D., Xin, H., Murthy, I. K., Arora, J. K., Sylva, K., Menon, L., Pardeshi, S., Kral, U., Liu, X. (2025). The SDG accelerator: Circular economy solutions through efficient sustainable consumption, Circular Economy, 4 (2). ISSN 2773-1677, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cec.2025.100140