NEWS

Coffee Chat for Student and Academic Innovators and Entrepreneurs

26^th January 2023

Coffee Chat is an initiative organized by the Business Linkage, Innovation, Incubation and Technology Transfer Office (BLII-TTO) of the University of Peradeniya in collaboration with the International Finance Corporation (IFC). The event was held successfully on the 26th of January 2023 from 16.00 to 18.00 at BLII-TTO, A6 Building, Uda Peradeniya Road, Peradeniya. The first session of the event was open to all the students and academic staff of the University giving priority to the Science Faculty on pre-register basis.

The primary goals of this effort are to spread the commercialization culture within the University and to inform the staff and students about the resources provided by the BLII-TTO of UoP. The program included a number of activities, such as a tour of the BLII-TTO to introduce the participants to the facilities provided by the office, which was followed by a presentation on “The Role and Process of BLII-TTO”, and a presentation on “Intellectual Property (IP) Assets and Commercializing of IP”. As the main item of the event, Innovator Park International (Pvt) Ltd founder Mr. Ranjan Kulathunga shared his experiences, challenges, successes, and failures on his entrepreneurial journey with the participants. The participants were also able to share their stories, current issues, and the kind of assistance they require in order to become successful entrepreneurs in the future. They were able to gain insight into the road they should take to fix their challenges as a result of this initiative. Further, the aspiring entrepreneurs and inventors were able to connect with each other and expand their network.

Prof. Roshan Dharshana Yapa (Director/BLII-TTO), Prof. Rohitha Prasantha (Member of IP Advisory Subcommittee), and Dr. PMTB. Sandirigama (Member of IP Advisory Subcommittee), Dr. Dimanthi Uduwela (Director / SIIC) joined the event.