Researcher biography
Nadeera holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Engineering from the University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka. Her specialisation was Earth Resources Engineering, focusing on Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems (RS & GIS). Then, she pursued a Master of Philosophy (MPhil) at the same university.
During her MPhil, she worked as a research assistant on a World Bank-funded project that explored the potential of rare earth elements (REEs) in Sri Lankan geological sources and developed novel extraction techniques to recover REEs from the most promising sources in the country. Upon completing her MPhil, she joined the Department of Earth Resources Engineering, University of Moratuwa, in 2023 as a contract lecturer. Additionally, she worked as a visiting lecturer in RS & GIS at the Department of Civil Engineering, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University from 2023-2024.
Nadeera’s research introduced new insights into the Sri Lankan mineral industry with prospective sources for critical metals, including rare earth elements (REEs). It contributed to advancing research in mineral exploration and mineral processing in Sri Lanka. She has published over 11 international journal papers and 12 research papers and 13 abstracts at national and international conferences. Her research interests lie in recovering critical metals from mine tailings and other mineral processing waste streams, which can eliminate the environmental risks associated with these streams.