USJ Vice-Chancellor Prof.Sudantha Liyanage presenting the souvenir to US Ambassador Alaina B.Teplitz

FHSS Dean Prof.Shirantha Heenkenda

Intending to disseminate knowledge in the fields of Humanities and Social Sciences, the University of Sri Jayewardenepura’s (USJ) Humanities and Social Sciences Faculty(FHSS) held its 7th International Conference on Humanities and Social Sciences(IRCHSS) from March 18-19 under the theme, “Collaborate and Discover: Break the Barriers.” Commencing the conference officially, the inaugural session was held on March 18 at USJ’s the New Senate Board Room. The US Ambassador, Alaina B. Teplitz was the Chief guest of the inaugural session while University Grant Commission Chairman Sampath Amaratunga was the guest of honour. Among other distinguished invitees were USJ’s Vice-Chancellor Sudantha Liyanage and FHSS Dean Shirantha Heenkenda
Speaking at the session, FHSS Dean, Prof.Heenkenda said, “Since the inception of IRCHSS in 2012, scholars and professionals from different parts of the world have assembled to share research-based knowledge. He said the faculty was fortunate to have a cadre of academicians with a vast repertoire of knowledge.
“Therefore, the IRCHSS-2021 is an ideal platform for those erudite scholars in the faculty and outside to present their findings,” he noted. 

He said, this year the faculty looks forward to expanding the possibilities of research with the conversion of the Multi-Disciplinary Research Centre(MDRC) as the International Centre for Multidisciplinary Studies(ICMS). 
Elaborating on the challenges the fields of humanities and social sciences could encounter, Prof. Heenkenda said, many scholars of the faculty continue to draw valuable insights into the world of humanities and social sciences while gaining a strong foothold in the research culture, adding certain limitations of broader collaborations, especially with the international research community had been a hurdle that they needed to overcome to enhance the research output of the faculty.

Ms Teplitz emphasised the ties between Sri Lanka and the United States in terms of a people to people connection rather than just an institutional relationship. She said that humanities and social sciences shape our understanding and perspective that form our society. 
This year’s IRCHSS comprised three plenary speeches, organized to generate an interactive discourse on some key topics in contemporary humanities and social sciences. The first plenary was delivered by Professor Praneeth Abhayasundere of the Department of Anthropology, the University of Sri Jayewardenepura on “Anthropomorphism and Zoomorphism: Resolving the Praxis.” 

Meanwhile, the second plenary was delivered by Dr Oshan Wedage, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of History and Archaeology of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura along with Dr Siran Deraniyagala, Professor M.M. Pathmalal and a team of researchers from Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Germany on “Fruits Of The Forest: Sri Lanka and Its Global Prehistory.” Finally, the third plenary was delivered by Professor Daniel Seely of Eastern Michigan University, USA, on “Toward Explaining Language: The Minimalist Perspective.”

IRCHSS is one of the most prestigious conferences organized in Sri Lanka in the fields of humanities and social sciences. This year’s conference was taken place on a real-time [Online] knowledge exchange platform. More than 100 research presentations were presented though the two conference dates under 08 conference tracks, including Buddhist Studies, Religion, and Philosophy; Communication, Media and Society; Environment, Governance and Development; History, Culture and Heritage; Language and Literature; and Technology, Innovation, and Education.

Prof.Shirantha Heendenda presenting the souvenir to UGC Chairman Prof.Sampath Amaratunga

PIX BY NISAL BADUGE PH