Family and smallholder farming

I began my professional journey in Sri Lanka’s flourishing floriculture industry, focusing on European and Far Eastern markets. Over five years, I led research and development initiatives, pioneering non-conventional breeding methods that significantly advanced the sector. This foundation facilitated my transition into project and program management, where I have had the privilege of collaborating with governmental bodies and international funding organizations. A highlight of my career was playing a key role in the success of the National Agriculture Development Program (2003-2014), contributing to strategic planning, coordination, and execution, while bringing over two decades of diverse experience within Sri Lanka’s agricultural development sector. My professional journey has been shaped by multidisciplinary training, equipping me with expertise in project and program management, monitoring and evaluation, strategic planning in MEAL (Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning), sustainable rural development, climate-smart agriculture, food and nutrition security, Agric value chain & SME developments,Results-Based Management (RBM), gender mainstreaming, and knowledge management, among other areas of competence. Since October 2015, I have had the privilege of coordinating multifaceted projects and programs for the EU Delegation in Sri Lanka and the Maldives, with a focus on integrated rural development. These initiatives span critical sectors such as agriculture ( agri- green), food and nutrition, local governance, WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene), SCP (Sustainable Consumption and Production), and Nature based tourism, all aimed at fostering positive, sustainable development. As I continue my professional path, I remain committed to leveraging my diverse expertise to drive impactful transformations across Sri Lanka’s evolving sectors, contributing meaningfully to sustainable development goals.

Attaché de Coopération, Chargé de programmes, Section infrastructures et développement durable

Working on Scaling up Village Input Fairs, Agriculture, Innovation, DEI, and more.

I work towards combining agronomic and environmental assessments to provide knowledge and tools to improve practices and to design new agroecological and sustainable production systems. My key research topics encompass developing knowledge on the links between agricultural practices and environmental impact mechanisms, greenhouse gas (GHG) emission modelling and Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) in order to model perennial cropping systems, to reduce uncertainty in field emission accounting, and to account better for impacts on soil quality. I have gained experience in more than 10 countries including Indonesia, Burkina Faso, and Brazil.

I am founder and Executive Director of Bantani, previously youth-worker, VET teacher and policy maker with Welsh government/European Commission and an international expert in entrepreneurship education and development. Bantani Education is a non-profit based in Belgium and working globally with a mission to transform learning. At the heart is the commitment is equipping young people and adults with transversal skills and mindset needed to be more entrepreneurial in life and work, leading to more learner engagement, active citizenship, employability and self-employment. Our skills work connects across entrepreneurial, digital, sustainability and finance skills development - integrating these in a coherent way across all sectors from pre-school to adult learning. Bantani achieves our vision by bringing extensive policy and practical experience to actions with partners from public, education, civil society and private sector, to research, test and embed high-quality learning practice and policy.

Professor of Development Anthropology and Co-Leader of the Centre for Society, Environment and Development at the Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich. Experienced research and consultant in a) social, institutional and policy aspects of livestock development and b) impacts of climate change on the rural poor and their opportunities for adaptation. Recent work through Agrinatura on value chains (VCA4D programme) and evaluation of the PRUNSAR agricultural research programme. Other recent work for the EU on the Livestock State of Play document, and technical assistance to the PLACE programme on pastoralism in East Africa