Dr Shashi Goonetilleke

As a researcher in agriculture, I am dedicated to advancing our understanding of genetics, genomics, sustainable farming practices and improving crop resilience in perennial and annual crops through innovative research and interdisciplinary collaboration. My main foci are to implement cutting-edge techniques in high-throughput sequencing, advanced phenotyping, genomic selection, and using G X E interactions towards developing climate resilient crops.

With the advent of next generation genotyping and phenotyping techniques, crop research is producing complex data at exponential rate and my current main research project aims to develop genetic, genomic and breeding related databases for tree crops such as apple, almond, citrus and berries using easy, user friendly, sustainable data collocation and analysing workflows, software and using AI. My other research interests include crop evolution, phylogenetics, self incompatibility, quantitative trait loci, protein interactions and functional genomics.

I would like to contribute to the education and mentorship of future agricultural scientists. I am interested in teaching undergraduate and graduate-level courses in plant science and sustainable agriculture. I also seek to mentor young researchers and students, providing them with the support and guidance needed to develop their own research skills and pursue careers in the agricultural sciences.