Ruwini EDIRISINGHE

Ruwini Edirisinghe is a multidisciplinary academic working at the intersection of digital innovation, the built environment and healthcare. She undertakes fundamental and applied research to develop innovative, technology-enabled solutions to complex real-world challenges. She currently leads RMIT’s Digital Twin Network, bringing together multidisciplinary expertise to advance Digital Twin research, foster collaboration and accelerate industry impact.

Her research spans the built environment and healthcare sectors, with a particular focus on Industry 5.0 and digital health. Her work explores the development and application of Digital Twins, artificial intelligence and machine learning, smart wearables, the Internet of Things (IoT), Building Information Modelling (BIM), AR/VR/XR, blockchain, data science and analytical modelling. Through this interdisciplinary approach, she investigates how emerging digital technologies can enable more intelligent, productive, human-centric and resilient built and healthcare systems.

Ruwini has demonstrated strong research leadership through competitive research funding, prestigious fellowships and multidisciplinary collaborations. To date, she has secured approximately $4.9 million in research funding and has led and contributed to collaborations across academia, industry, government and the community. A key focus of her work is translating technological innovation into practical solutions and measurable real-world impact.

She is a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and a longstanding advocate for diversity and inclusion in engineering and technology. Since 2012, she has contributed to advancing gender diversity through IEEE and, since 2014, through RMIT’s Women Researchers’ Network. Her leadership has progressively extended beyond gender diversity to champion broader inclusion across the education and career pipeline, creating opportunities for diverse researchers, professionals and future leaders.

Awards and Distinctions:

• Research Excellence Award- Mid-Career (2025), College of Design and Social Context, RMIT University
• Outstanding WIE Leadership Award (2025) – IEEE Australia Council
• Best Research Paper Award (2025) – World Building Congress 2025, USA
• Best Scientific Paper Award (2025) at the 16th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment 2025 & Next-Gen Innovation and Advancement
• Leadership Award - Outstanding Organisational Unit Award (2024), IEEE, The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
• Outstanding Volunteer Award (2023), IEEE, The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
• Vistas Award (2023), CIB, The International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction
• RMIT Vice Chancellor’s Research Award: Malcolm Moore Industry Award (2015),
• RMIT Vice-Chancellor's Research Fellowship Award (2015-2021)
• RMIT University Early Career Researcher International Travel Award (2014)
• Endeavour Post-doctoral Research Fellowship Award (2011), Australian Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations
• Research Commercialisation Training Award (2008), Commonwealth Government, Australia