The Vision of IRC

The vision of IRC is for advancing the know-how on science, technology, policies, and operational practices of university, government institutions, industry, commers and the community at local, national, and international levels. 

The Mission of IRC

To research, develop and disseminate reliable but appropriate and sustainable policies, processes, science, and technologies to manage all kinds of issues and risks, including backwardness of the society, wrong approach to economy and environment and also implement climate resilience and sustainable development actions, considering:

Goals of the IRC

The IRC is the formally structured non-profit, non-partisan Centre within the University of Vavuniya, with the goal of developing, delivering, and advocating or promoting research in multidisciplinary field, to extend collaborations among the national, international universities and industries to enhance research opportunities for the betterment of the research students/staff and the regional, national, and international community for making the sustainable change. 

Aims of the IRC

The aim of the IRC is to develop the International-National-Local (University-Community-Industry-Commerce) Linkages, collaborations, and partnerships to deliver following components:

To carry out cross-cutting bottom-up applied research (to influence policy/technology through scientific understanding of system behaviour) with the top-down reviews, basic or fundamental research, analysis on current local issues, foresight future risks, prioritise, appraise the management options, and find the appropriate, affordable, acceptable and reliable sustainable development solution; To generate and provide new independent evidence, data, information and knowledge to improve Sri Lankan and the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) nations capabilities for developing science, policies, processes, technologies and managing operations; To develop innovative scientific method, models, tools, techniques as well as to archive and disseminate the research outputs to support sustainable social-cultural, etho(s)-economics, environmental and politico-legal development and also mitigate or adopt future changes such as climate and its impacts. 

To educate via both short community/professional development courses and postgraduate academic research (with Graduate studies/Doctoral college), mentor for attitude-change, provide training to develop collective stakeholders’ (students, academic-researchers, professional-practitioners, policymakers, and wider community) knowledge, skills, capabilities, competencies, and capacity development and life-long individual learning (managing, mitigating, adapting to climate change and sustainable development). Mainly to transfer/ inter-change knowledge including socio-economic-environmental and politico-legal applied theories; cutting-edge, dynamics, appropriate, reliable analytical techniques, strategic approaches and technologies, transcending national and disciplinary boundaries. Particularly to increase their interest, willingness, and capability to involve meaningful engagement to create and use scientific evidence, innovation and related think-tank, policy and strategy development, operational delivery activities of community/provinces/nations to deliver UN SDG in Sri Lanka and South Asian (SAARC) countries. 

To form a Discussion Forum to support the policy, processes, strategic plan, operational practice, technology development and implementation to solve problems, make decisions at the local, national, and international levels; to implement the University’s Vision and UN SDGs, COP objectives and to build a nation with progressive harmonised “socio-economic-environmental-politico-legal” system. This also to network, engage, interact, coordinate, communicate, consult, advocate, outreach, discuss based on critical thinking with National and International inter and intra subject specialists, scientists, academics, intellectuals, professional practitioners, policymakers, governmental authorities, agencies, NGO, young community leaders, UOV Staff, and students. This is to deliver sustainable development, to manage climate change probability, consequence and vulnerability and build a sustainably developed nation, with like-minded charitable citizen groups, lawful democratic political parties, and environmental/social activists as collaborative partnership with international countries. 

The multi-disciplinary activities within these three components would include development, coordination, and facilitation of all international research, innovation, think-tank, outreach activities and related postgraduate education, training such as remote/ shared PhDs and research fellowships to improving the research/ academic capabilities of staff and students. The “IRC” would assist the University to identify opportunities for international collaboration, partnership, and funding from national and international players to support all the above components. With the help of international funding institutions and collaboration with international universities, in addition to the university students and staff, the IRA would provide life-long learning and relevant know-how to the local, national and international communities, and institutions to achieve IRC’s vision, mission, and goals. The IRC would encourage and involve the people, commers, industry and institutions in Sri Lanka and abroad, who are equipped with data, information, knowledge, skills, experience in developing appropriate/ reliable/ innovative research tools, techniques, curriculum (for knowledge/ technology transfer) and teaching/ training/learning-support/guidance, as well as funds and other in-kind resources.

Within the aim of IRC, the following principles are incorporated. 

• Achieving Sustainable Development Goals including climate resilience.

• Preparing Universities for Science-based Technological Changes

• Promoting the relevance of Creative Liberal Arts research to change the focus from traditional to appropriateness 

• Innovating Shared Services (infrastructure and facilities) Model for Sri Lankan and International Universities

• Internationalising University Research and postgraduate study/professional training

• Developing University-Industry-Institution-Community Linkages: Strengthening and extending to all the disciplines

• Promoting Entrepreneurship: Entrepreneurial University Model in the University

Development of a country, regions and the communities depend on the sustainability of social, economic, environmental, and political aspects, The Governments, and its Institutions, including the academic and research institutions must work with its citizens within and outside of the country and produce science, technology, management practices, evidence-based policies, strategic and operational plans to deliver a noticeable sustainable change or development. Currently in South Asia including Sri Lanka several issues and risks needed to be identified and solved with the help of local and international community. Many academic research and professional institutions in developed countries have successfully trained, educated, and involved their students, staff, and citizens in various professions. With their inputs, successfully defined the problem, assessed, foresighted and prioritised the risk, appraised the options, selected the response, developed, and implemented policies and good practices for sustainable change. To make this happen in Sri Lanka, first, the professionals, and intellectuals in the civil societies, living locally and abroad must be bridged beyond the ethnic and geographical divide, with the local young community leaders, NGOs, Government Authorities, the others in the societies who have the capability and willingness. The academic and professional must join with the Policymakers and practitioners, to lead, and support the knowledge/technology transfer, further research, innovation in science, technology, and management and embed the evidence and innovations. This must lead to evidence-based policies, processes and innovative but appropriate operational best practice for sustainable "socio-culture, etho(s)-economic, built/natural environmental and politico-legal change. The evidence, innovations and the information must be available publicly/readily in repositories. These outputs and outcomes needed to be disseminated, promoted, and advocated, to that facilitate sustainable social, economic, environmental, and political change at local, national, and international level. 

To deliver these urgent and important needs, the country’s academic and research institutions must play a key role. This would be possible, if universities in Sri Lanka take lead on establishing a think-tank that uses applied science, technology, and management to help/challenge the policymakers and practitioners to improve the policies, processes, and operational practices of governmental/non-governmental, public/private institutions to deliver the above changes or developments more sustainably. To achieve the vision, proposed think-tank must be based on evidence or research. Therefore, it is a necessity for the proposed Research and Think-tank to collect and provide data and information from credible Sri Lankan sources, published international best practices, research, innovation, and development of Science, Technology, Policies, Processes, and management Practices. In addition to this top-down data and information, the bottom-up research to identify issues/risk, priorities and sustainable development options from the students, staff, and various Sri Lankan communities, who can understand their real political, socio-cultural, economic, and environmental issues and values, are necessary. This bottom-up, top-down, middle-out research and Think-tank would provide more appropriate, acceptable, and reliable solutions to that communities. As such the UoV is determined to foster high-quality think-tank and uphold excellence in problem solving bottom-up research and scholarly activities to achieve Sustainable Social, Economic, Environmental, and Political Change in local, regional, national, and international levels. Currently the UoV is in a process of pooling all the relevant academic and research capabilities within the current and future faculties and centres and with the partnerships with national and international stakeholders via the already developed an International Research Centre – IRC.        

Current and future generation are and would be facing many challenges due to various pressures and drivers poses by rapidly changing complex social, economic, environmental, and politic-legal aspects. To manage these changes, the community must develop its capabilities. Therefore, the UoV is taking a serious attempt to educate, train the students, researchers in the higher education, recent graduates, and young community leaders from all “walks of life.” Currently the capability and willingness of the local community to involve in research, discussions to find issues, risks, priorities, and the options for solution, are lacking. To make behavioural changes within the current and future community leaders, the attitude changes must happen first. So, a focussed communication, structured knowledge and technology transfer and critical discussions about their priority problems and their preferred solutions, are necessary. In addition, the community leaders and students, researchers in the higher education must have the “know-how” to develop science, technology, and best management practices as well as system-based, risk-focused, tiered processes for policymaking, strategic planning, and to deliver Harmonised Sustainable Development with the academic and professional community. The UoV believes that the International Research Centre is the way forward,

The reasons for proposing the establishment of the International Research Centre in the University of Vavuniya is that it is in a highly war-affected, and rapidly developing multi-ethnic region. This newly established university is determined to foster high-quality think-tank and uphold excellence in problem solving bottom-up research and scholarly activities to achieve Sustainable Social, Economic, Environmental, and Political Change in local, regional, national, and international levels. The relevant academic capacities within the faculties of applied science, business studies and technological studies are useful to achieve this wish. The university also very keen to facilitate remote or shared PhDs and research fellowships with the international universities to improve its research capabilities, while providing know-how on sustainable change to Sri-Lankan communities. 

The International Research Centre is also to develop and deliver the national and international collaborative research and think-tank activities with the people and institutions, who are equipped with vital data, information, knowledge, skills and experience on appropriate/reliable tools, techniques, and guidance as well as funding and other in-kind resources. These resources are essential for multi-disciplinary crosscutting holistic thinking, and research to facilitate the sustainable developments. Another reason is to create university-wide research repository, advocacy, and consultancy facilities, for dissemination/promotion of the research outputs and outcome that to facilitate sustainable change.