Nuwan Herath

Anthropology Ph.D. Candidate

Graduate Teaching Assistant

UNITE Predoctoral Research Fellow

As a student anthropologist, my doctoral research explores the complexities of migration, religion, and diaspora in the United States. I also bring over 13 years of experience in higher education teaching, having previously served as a Senior Lecturer and Head of the Department of Social Sciences at the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University in Sri Lanka. In that role, I led initiatives in promoting nonviolent communication and media literacy, supported by grants from the UNDP and EU. My research interests include Buddhist monastic reforms and religious debates in Sri Lanka, as well as political-economic issues and state accountability, alongside questions of violence, resistance, and peacebuilding.

Contact Information

nuwan.h@uky.edu

Education

MA University of Kentucky. 2026
MA University of Notre Dame. 2013
MA Tribhuvan University. 2011
BA (1st Class) University of Kelaniya. 2007

Research Interests

Anthropology of Religion
political economy
South Asia
Peace Studies
conflict studies
Accountability
Migration

Affiliations

Anthropology
American Anthropological Association (AAA)
Lambda Alpha National Collegiate Honors Society for Anthropology

ORCID
Google Scholar
ResearchGate
Academia
LinkedIn

Awards

Fellowships

UNITE Predoctoral Research Fellow (2025/26), University of Kentucky, USA – Continued funding following successful performance; awarded a stipend worth $10,000 and $1,000 in research support.
UNITE Predoctoral Research Fellow (2024/25), University of Kentucky, USA – A stipend worth $10,000 and $1,000 in research support.

Fully Funded Scholarships

Department of Anthropology Doctoral Funding, University of Kentucky in the USA (2023- Present) – (Full tuition scholarship, health insurance, and a stipend of approx. $ 18,356 per academic year).
Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies Funding, University of Notre Dame in the USA (2009 – 2011) – (Tuition fee of approximately $38,270 per academic year and a stipend of $12,500 per academic year).
NORAD’s Program for Master Studies (NOMA) Scholarship, Tribhuvan University in Nepal (2007 – 2009) – (Full tuition fees, travel, and living expenses).

Grants

Principal Proposal Developer / Grant Lead, United Nations Development Program (UNDP) grant for the development of a Center for Media Studies within the Department of Social Sciences, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, Sri Lanka (January 2022). Grant value: approximately USD 12,400; co-funded by the European Union Service for Foreign Policy Instruments.
Principal Proposal Developer / Grant Lead, United Nations Development Program (UNDP) grant proposal for the establishment of a Comprehensive Academic Program on Promoting Nonviolent Communication and Responsible Media Use through the Department of Social Sciences, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, Sri Lanka (November 2020). Grant value: approximately USD 119,000; co-funded by the European Union Service for Foreign Policy Instruments.

Awards

Adelski Dissertation Research Award (2026), Department of Anthropology, University of Kentucky – Amount: $ 2,000.
Summer Ph.D. Dissertation Research Award (2026), Department of Anthropology, University of Kentucky – Amount: $ 2,200.
Ira Unamboowe Graduate Student Travel Grant, American Institute for Sri Lankan Studies (AISLS) – Amount: $ 400
Conference Travel Award (2025) Department of Anthropology, University of Kentucky – Amount: $ 900
Margaret Lantis Award for Excellence in Original Research (2025), Department of Anthropology, University of Kentucky – Amount: $ 250
William Y. Adams Award for Excellence in Teaching (2025), Department of Anthropology, University of Kentucky - Amount: $ 500
Summer PhD Student Dissertation Research Award (2024), Department of Anthropology, University of Kentucky – Amount: $ 1,500.
Susan Abbott – Jamieson Pre-Dissertation Research Award (2024), Department of Anthropology, University of Kentucky – Amount: $1,000.
Overall Best Presentation (2017), 4th International Conference on Social Sciences (ICOSS), Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Summer Research Award (2010), Joan B. Kroc Institute, University of Notre Dame – Amount $1500.

Selected Publications

Selected Publications:

Wickramasinghe, D., Wijethilake, C., & Herath, N. (2025). Counter-accounts of the absent state: Accounting for violence, silence and resistance. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 1–33. https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-11-2024-7547

Herath, N. (2023). Book Review: Vodun: Secrecy and the Search for Divine Power by Timothy R. Landry Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2018. 201pp. Journal of Management, Social Sciences and Humanities, 04(02), 103–105.

Hewage, P., Hemakumara, G., Pannilage, U., & Herath, N. (2022). Influence of Gender Difference on the Factors Associated with Successful Aging: The Case of Sri Lanka. Journal of Asian Geography, 1(1), 1-6.

Herath, N. (2021). Reforms via Katikāvat: Dissension among Buddhist Monks in Sri Lanka over the Code of Conduct Bill. South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies, 44(1), 52-70. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00856401.2021.1864705

Herath, N. (2020). Sri Lanka’s Economic Woes amidst COVID-19 and the Way Forward. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Economic Issues, 4(1), 39 – 44. doi: https://doi.org/10.32674/ijeei.v4i1.38