Gothamie Weerakoon

Dr. Gothamie Weerakoon (Sinhala: ගෝතමී වීරකෝන්) is a Sri Lankan based botanist, lichenologist and environmentalist who currently resides in London.[1] She is the first South Asian woman scientist to hold the Annual Grantee award from the National Geographic Society.[2] She currently works as the senior curator of Lichens and Slime Moulds at the Natural History Museum of London and also with tea brand, Dilmah.[3]

Gothamie Weerakoon
Born05-02-1973
Matale, Central Province, Sri Lanka
NationalitySri Lankan
EducationDevi Balika Vidyalalya, Colombo
Alma materUniversity of Colombo
Sri Jayawardenepura University
Occupationbotanist, environmentalist, lichenologist
OrganizationThe Natural History Museum
Known fordiscovery of lichens

Career

After completing her primary education at the Devi Balika Vidyalaya in Colombo, she attended the University of Colombo, completing her PhD in 2013 at the Sri Jayawardenepura University.[4] She emerged as the most active Sri Lanka's lichen researcher on lichens.[5] She has conducted researches on South Asian lichens, discovering over 100 new species, endemic to Sri Lanka.[6][7] Some of the species she has discovered include Heterodermia queesnberryi and Polymeridium fernandoi. In 2015, she wrote Fascinating Lichens of Sri Lanka, which provides unknown facts about lichen species endemic to Sri Lanka.[8][9]

References
  1. roar.media https://roar.media/english/life/environment-wildlife/lichens-as-a-key-to-the-future-and-one-scientists-quest-to-study-them/. Retrieved 18 November 2019. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  2. Society, National Geographic. "Learn more about Gothamie S. Weerakoon". es.education.nationalgeographic.com. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
  3. "Dr Gothamie Weerakoon | Natural History Museum". staging.nhm.ac.uk. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
  4. "Gothamie Weerakoon biography". Press Reader. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
  5. "Gothamie Weerakoon and her discovery on lichens". island.lk. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
  6. "Environmentalist discovers 51 species of Lichen". Newsfirst.lk. 8 December 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
  7. "The fascinating world of the lichens". Ceylontoday. 22 March 2015. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
  8. www.amazon.com https://www.amazon.com/Fascinating-Lichens-Lanka-Gothamie-Weerakoon-ebook/dp/B01HN251EM. Retrieved 18 November 2019. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. "A new species of lichen named after Dilmah Founder | Daily FT". www.ft.lk. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
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