Nisha Fernando receives service award from the Environmental Design Research Association

LAWRENCE — Nisha Fernando, associate professor and director of interior architecture at the University of Kansas School of Architecture & Design, is the recipient of the 2022 Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA) service award.

The award, given in recognition for contributions of services that advance the field of environmental design research, was presented during EDRA’s annual conference June 1-4 in Greenville, South Carolina. 

Fernando has made numerous significant contributions that promote the mission of EDRA. She was a member of EDRA’s board of directors from 2015 to 2018, and during that tenure she served as secretary of the board and director of the organization’s communications cluster. In 201, she co-chaired the EDRA46 Conference in Los Angeles, organizing the conference, submissions, reviews and awards.

From 2016 to 2018, Fernando served as the editor of EDRA Connections and coordinated the Environment by Design annual newsletter. She served on the EDRA membership subcommittee from 2011 to 2013. She has co-chaired the EDRA Knowledge Network’s Cultural Aspects of Design Network since 2009.

In addition to her active involvement in EDRA Knowledge Networks, serving as a peer reviewer and regular presenter, she has been a member of the editorial board of Journal of Interior Design. She also reviews submissions for research grants, book proposals and journal papers as she promotes the scholarly mission of EDRA.

Fernando began as a lecturer in 1993 after obtaining a Master of Science in architecture from the University of Moratuwa in Sri Lanka. After teaching at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point for 18 years, she joined KU in 2022. Her research focus has been on environment-behavior relations, culture and space, traditional sustainable approaches and design studio pedagogy.