Wasantha Athukorala holds a doctorate in Economics from Queensland University of Technology, Australia, a M.Phil and a B.A. (Honours) in Economics from the University of Peradeniya, where he is working as a Professor in Economics. In addition, he has completed more than 20 short courses in various countries around the world, including the United States, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Thailand, India, Nepal, and Bhutan. His research focuses on Environmental Economics, Agricultural Economics, and Sustainable Development. He has over 45 research papers published in prestigious national and international journals such as Ecologies, Education Sciences, Empirical Economics, Land Use Policy, Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Journal of Forest Economics, Sustainable Cities and Society, The Singapore Economic Review, Journal of Agricultural Economics, The Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Hydrogeology Journal, Energy Economics, Economic Analysis and Policy, Journal of Resources, Energy, and Development and Journal of Smart Economic Growth. He is a co-author of five textbooks and the author of two. He has authored ten book chapters and presented over 50 research papers at national and international conferences. Despite his broad research interests, he is particularly interested in empirical work on environmental issues and has made a number of significant contributions in this area. His work has had and continues to have a significant impact on policy decisions in Sri Lanka. Wasantha Athukorala has been named the best economist in Sri Lanka by the AD Scientific Index - 2021. He has also been named as a tier 4* researcher by the University of Peradeniya.