Starting from Scratch
We are certain that, throughout the course of 2018, there was been successful progress in the achievement of aims set at the commencement of the year by the Institute for Research & Development and the Gaveshana magazine.
Taking center stage is the phenomenal progress of the recent twin research project: South Asian Early-development and Research Capacity-building (SEARCH). The Colombo district twin registry database of twin pairs under 18 years of age is advancing with great strides of success. The Sri Lankan Twin Registry established in 1996 already boasts over 9,500 adult twin pairs. This issue of the Gaveshana magazine illustrates many aspects of this progress. We appreciate the support provided towards this endeavor by the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education. This support carries with it a special nature, in that, the respective Ministries will become respectful stakeholder of research conducted utilizing this database; while also benefiting from the research outcome, which will help in their policy development processes.
Furthermore, on the 19th of December 2018, the Institute for Research and Development achieved a historic organizational victory. It secured two awards at the national awards ceremony organized by the National Science Foundation in recognition of exceptional contributors towards the development of the science and technology field. The IRD attained a Merit Award under the category “Excellence in International Collaboration for Advancement of science and technology”, while its founder Professor Athula Sumathipala was presented the National Award under the category “Outstanding Leadership in Promoting & Developing science and technology”.
How did the Institute for Research and Development, which began 20 years prior, with a handful of individuals manage to gain these and numerous other accolades? This experience ought to be shared with other organizations and individuals. The reason for this being that we are certain our journey upstream, outside the university system and its monumental experiences will be highly valued guidance for researchers in this country. Through this issue of Gaveshana, we share with you the plans for our herculean journey in establishing a culture of research in Sri Lanka, incorporating bioethics when conducting this research and establishing the public and patients as honorary stakeholders from the onset of research planning.
In the modern world, knowledge is an enormous force; the world order is governed not only through economic might, but also by incorporating the power of knowledge along with it. Let us also travel this path. It is widely accepted that during ancient times our nation was known as Asia’s granary, in addition, let us make it known as Asia’s knowledge repository. On this journey, let us incorporate our mite yet deep dedication.