Following a recommendation from Professor Adinarayana Kalanidhi, Vice-Chancellor of the newly established Commonwealth Science and Technology Institute (CSTI), Kandy, Sri Lanka, the Board of Directors of Shri Ambal Private Limited (holding company of the CSTI), based in Colombo, Sri Lanka, invited the WIETE Director, Prof. Zenon J. Pudlowski, to accept appointment to the honorary position of Chancellor of the CSTI. The invitation was accepted on 17 February 2012. The Chancellor has the responsibility of chairing the Board of Governors of the Institute.

This new academic institution is committed to setting new standards in higher education. Through a student-centred approach, it will endeavour to provide the most positive environment for learning available anywhere. The Institute's programmes will be structured to be in tune with international demand to allow students greater flexibility in course selection and career orientation. The CSTI is located in the heart of Kandy in Sri Lanka, and will derive its academic strength by appointing diverse academic and professional staff from all over the world. The Institute will solicit the involvement of industry in and around the CSTI and other regions in Sri Lanka to make use of the abundant opportunity by involving themselves in industry-based research. Further, students will have a golden opportunity to avail themselves of the higher education facilities at CSTI.

With the appointment of Prof. Pudlowski to this position, it is envisaged that several eminent international academics, members of the WIETE global network, will be invited to collaborate with those at the CSTI by providing services to the Institute and taking up honorary positions.

The photograph shows Prof. A. Kalanidhi, the foundation Vice-Chancellor of the CSTI and President of the WIETE International Academic Advisory Committee (WIETE-IAAC), addressing the Opening Ceremony of the recently held 3rd WIETE Annual Conference on Engineering and Technology Education.