Prof. Janaka Yasantha Ruwanpura
Positions
Vice-Provost and Associate Vice-President Research (International)
University of Calgary International
Professor
Schulich School of Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering
Contact information
Phone number
Office: +1 (403) 220-6892
Provost's Office: +1-403-220-5686
Location
Faculty Office: Engineering F Block335
Office : Administration Building (Executive Suite)100M
Background
Credentials
Professional Engineer (P.Eng.), Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta, 2012
Professional Quantity Surveyor (PQS), Canadian Institute of Quantity Surveying, 2001
Professional Member/Chartered Surveyor, Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, 2012
Fellow (FCSCE), Canadian Society for Civil Engineering, 2014
Fellow Member (NAC), National Academy of Construction, USA, 2021
Gold Seal Certified (GSC), Canadian Construction Association, 2022
Fellow (FCAE), Canadian Academy of Engineering , 2023
Educational Background
Ph.D. Construction Engineering and Management, University of Alberta, 2001
M.Sc. Construction Management, Arizona State University, 1997
B.Sc. (Hons) Quantity Surveying, University of Moratuwa (Sri Lanka), 1992
Biography
Professor Janaka Ruwanpura is the Vice-Provost and Associate Vice-President Research (International) at the University of Calgary. He is a winner of 2022’s Top 25 Canadian Immigrants by the Canadian Immigrants Magazine, introduced by the Prime Minister of Canada. He was the elected Executive Chair (2019-21) of the Commission of International Initiatives of the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU) as the first Canadian and Non-American to chair any councils and commissions of APLU. He is a full professor who served as Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Project Management Systems (2007-13) in the Schulich School of Engineering at the University of Calgary, Canada, before becoming the Vice-Provost International in 2013. He was the Founding Director of the Centre for Project Management Excellence at the University of Calgary and has been the Director of Project Management since 2005.
Prof. Ruwanpura, a former US Fulbright scholar, has developed many best practices and tools that have been successfully implemented in the construction industry for productivity improvement, project management, project planning, construction management, risk management, decision analysis and sustainability. He has published over 180 technical papers in refereed journals and conference proceedings. Prof. Ruwanpura has also been recognized with many national and international awards for teaching, research, innovation, leadership, service, graduate education and internationalization.
During his 9+ years as VPI and Associate Vice-President Research, he has brought new initiatives to the University of Calgary, including developing and implementing collaborative degree models for undergraduate and graduate levels, offering customized training and capacity building programs, co-developing Global Research Initiatives and Sites in China and Mexico and raising funding for research and infrastructure (over $57 Million), establishing and promoting new research opportunities and partnerships in several countries (USA, UK, Germany, China, Mexico, Norway, India, etc.), promoting and developing new funding models (over $1 Million per year) for opportunities for students’ international experience and to enhance global exposure for faculty and staff and securing, raising research internships through MITACS ($5.4 Million), lobbying for international development grants (over $25 Million), establishing an international research and partnership unit and building a strategic university alliance with Curtin and Aberdeen universities. Because of some of these initiatives, UCalgary has won 6 competitive awards since 2016, including the “Comprehensive Internationalization” award from the Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE) and the “Platinum” Institutional Award for “Global Learning, Research & Engagement” from APLU. He also led to developing an International Partnership Assessment Rating Index (IPARI) to assess existing university partnerships, identify top partners in each country and develop strategic partnerships. UCalgary received the Catalyst award for innovation for IPARI from CBIE (2019) and the Innovation Award in Internationalization (2020) from the Association of International Education Administrators (AIEA).
Research
Areas of Research
Participation in university strategic initiatives
Awards
- Lifetime Achievement Award, Immigrants Services Calgary. 2023
- Top 50 voices in North America in International Education , The PIE Leadership Digest, London, UK . 2023
- Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Award, Canadian Immigration Magazine. 2022
- Board of Directors Leadership Award, Canadian Bureau of International Education (CBIE). 2020
- International Achievement Award, City of Calgary. 2020
- Distinguished Alumni Award, Academy of the School of Sustainable Engineering and Built Environment, Arizona State University. 2019
- ASTECH Award under “Outstanding Achievement in Applied Technology”, Alberta Science and Technology . 2018
- Lifetime Achievement Award, Sri Lanka Foundation, Los Angeles. 2016
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Award , Immigrant Services Calgary. 2016
- Brian D. Dunfield Educational Service Award, Association for the Advancement in Cost Engineering. 2012
- Water Shanly Career Award in Construction Engineering, Canadian Society for Civil Engineering. 2012
- Industry Partnership Award, Calgary Construction Association. 2012
- Canada Research Chair Tier 2 in Project Management Systems, NSERC. 2007
- Research Achievement Award, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary. 2018
- Graduate Teaching Excellence Award – Instructor, Graduate students’ Association, University of Calgary. 2008
- Graduate Educator Award, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary. 2008
- Presidential Internalization Achievement Award (faculty member), University of Calgary International. 2006
- Service Excellence Award , Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary. 2006
Publications
In the News
- 4 UCalgary leaders receive 2023 Immigrants of Distinction Awards.
- The PIE Leadership Digest: 50 voices of North American Voices. (2023)
- UCalgary’s Janaka Ruwanpura wins Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Award. (2022)
- Member News and Highlight: Dr. Janaka Ruwanpura. (2021)
- Dr. Janaka Ruwanpura receives the INTERNATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD from the City of Calgary. You Tube. (2020)
- 4 UCalgary faculty named Canadian Academy of Engineering Fellows. (2023)
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