The US Embassy in Sri Lanka and the Association for Disaster Risk Management Professionals (ADRiMP) will host a public GeoAI for Disaster Resilience Exhibition and Symposium at the University of Colombo’s Faculty of Graduate Studies auditorium on Thursday, May 14.
The event will showcase artificial-intelligence-enhanced mapping tools developed under a programme the Embassy backed in December 2025 in the aftermath of Cyclone Ditwah. Designed by Dr. Novil Wijesekara and Dr. Aslam Saja in collaboration with ADRiMP, the programme combines geographic data — maps, satellite imagery and weather patterns — with AI to improve prediction, monitoring and response to natural disasters.
The initiative has trained 150 Geographic Information Systems professionals and university students in advanced AI-enhanced disaster-risk tools. The Embassy said the tools can map flood-prone areas in real time, predict storm impacts on specific communities and assist emergency responders with evacuation planning — capabilities that will be demonstrated at the exhibition.
The symposium will feature locally developed GeoAI solutions applied to Sri Lankan disaster challenges. The exhibition is open to the public from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on May 14. Registration is required at https://arcg.is/0b9bbL2.
The launch follows a week in which monsoon rains forced the opening of spill gates at three reservoirs and the Met Department issued a low-pressure-area advisory with 100mm rain forecasts for five provinces — a live test case for the AI-driven flood-mapping capabilities the programme is meant to support. Cyclone Ditwah in November 2025 killed 646 people and caused $4.1 billion in damage, exposing gaps in Sri Lanka’s disaster modelling that the GeoAI tools aim to address.
