Rate My Professor Ruwan Fernando

Dr. Ruwan Fernando serves as a Senior Lecturer in the Architecture discipline within the School of Engineering and Built Environment at Griffith University, based at the Gold Coast campus. He obtained his architecture qualification from Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand before pursuing and completing his Doctor of Philosophy in Queensland, Australia. Throughout his career at Griffith University, Fernando has dedicated himself to bridging traditional architectural practices with cutting-edge computational technologies in both teaching and research capacities.

Fernando's primary research domains include the utilization of computer modelling to support built environment design, the fusion of parametric and generative methods with Building Information Modelling (BIM) to facilitate explorative design modelling, designer-computer interactions, cybernetics applications, and innovative pedagogical strategies in architecture education. His scholarly output is evidenced by more than 660 citations on Google Scholar. Prominent publications feature "Parametric and generative methods with building information modelling: Connecting BIM with explorative design modelling" co-authored with Robin Drogemuller and Alan Burden; "On the use of Building Information Modelling for design exploration of high-rise buildings" published in 2022 with Ebrahim Solgi, Zahra Hamedani, Karine Dupre, Henry Skates, and Cecilia Bischeri; "Tangible User Interfaces for Teaching Building Physics: Towards Continuous Designing in Education" from 2016 with Karine Dupre and Henry Skates; "Solving planning problems with evolutionary computation" in 2023 alongside Ruby Michael; and the 2024 paper "Considering the Wellbeing of Those Designing the Built Environment: Attrition Factors Impacting the Career Longevity of Architecture Graduates" with Marli Möller and Karine Dupre. Furthermore, he has engaged in funded research, notably a project amounting to $2,500 supported by the School of Engineering and Built Environment. In his teaching role, Dr. Fernando instructs undergraduate modules on construction, design studios, and communication, while pioneering educational tools such as tangible user interfaces for teaching building physics concepts.