Mr. Oussama El Gharras | Sustainable Engineering | Innovative Research Award

Mr. Oussama El Gharras | National Institute for Agricultural Research | Morocco

Mr. Oussama El Gharras is a distinguished agricultural engineering specialist with extensive expertise in mechanization, conservation agriculture, and the development of farm machinery, supported by a research record featuring 57 citations by 55 documents, 8 published documents, and an h-index of 4. Born on 22 November 1962 in Marrakech, he earned his Ingénieur d’application degree from IAV Hassan II, followed by a Master of Science in Agricultural Engineering from Oklahoma State University and PHD coursework at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, later strengthening his managerial background through the Cycle Supérieur de Gestion at ENCG Settat. His career at INRA encompasses major contributions to small farm mechanization, animal traction, food legume production mechanisation, and the design and industrial development of No-Till seed drills and feed block units. He managed the INRA agricultural engineering laboratory and coordinated several national and international initiatives, including the INRA-IAV-DERD No-Till project, AAAID-CRRA Settat program, AusAID-ACIAR-INRA collaboration, and ConServeTerra. As Vice President of AGENDA and an active member of AMAC and the National Commission of Agricultural Mechanization, he continues to play a pivotal role in advancing sustainable agriculture in North Africa. His scientific publications address conservation agriculture, weed dynamics, and resilient farming systems in semi-arid regions.

Profile: Scopus

Featured Publications

El Gharras, O. (2024). Perceptions and sociocultural factors underlying adoption of conservation agriculture in the Mediterranean. Agriculture and Human Values.

El Gharras, O., El Mourid, M., & Boulal, H. (2016). Conservation agriculture in North Africa: Experiences, achievements and challenges. In A. Kassam et al. (Eds.), Conservation agriculture for Africa: Building resilient farming systems in changing climate. CAB International.

Tanji, A., El Gharras, O., Mayfield, A., & El Mourid, M. (2017). On-farm evaluation of integrated weed management in no-till rainfed crops in semi-arid Morocco. African Journal of Agricultural Research, 12(16), 1404–1410.

Tanji, A., El Gharras, O., Ouabbou, H., & Mladen, T. (2017). Weed dynamics in no-till rainfed crops in Chaouia, semi-arid Morocco. Journal of Agricultural Science, 9(11).

El Gharras, O., El Brahli, A., & El Mourid, M. (2009). No-till system applied to Northern Africa rainfed agriculture: Case of Morocco. In Proceedings of the 4th World Congress on Conservation Agriculture (pp. xx–xx). New Delhi, India.

El Gharras, O., & Idrissi, M. (2006). Contraintes technologiques au développement du semis direct au Maroc. Options Méditerranéennes, Série A: Séminaires Méditerranéens, 69, 121–124.

El Gharras, O., Ait Lhaj, A., & Idrissi, M. (2004). Développement d’un semoir non labour industriel. In Deuxièmes Rencontres Méditerranéennes sur le Semis Direct (pp. 74–81). FERT/RCM; AGER.

Mrs. Tharangika Bambaravanage | Green Technologies | Green Energy Award

Mrs. Tharangika Bambaravanage | Institute of Technology, University of Moratuwa | Sri Lanka

Mrs. Tharangika Bambaravanage is a Senior Lecturer at the Institute of Technology, University of Moratuwa, with more than 20 years of experience in electrical engineering. Her research focuses on renewable energy, green technologies, and power system stability, contributing to the advancement of sustainable and efficient power systems. She has completed 4 major research projects and is currently leading 1 ongoing project in collaboration with the Ceylon Electricity Board on minimizing the impact of solar photovoltaic (PV) penetration on the power quality of distribution lines. Dr. Bambaravanage has published 7 academic documents indexed in Scopus, with citations by 3 documents and an h-index of 1. According to Google Scholar, she has received 42 total citations and 27 in recent years, with an h-index of 5 and 3 respectively. Her scholarly work includes 4 journal papers, 2 book chapters, and 1 published book addressing issues in power system operation and sustainable energy management. As a Chartered Engineer and professional member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and the Institution of Engineers Sri Lanka, she plays a key role in bridging academia and industry while driving innovation in renewable and resilient energy systems.

Profiles: Scopus | Google Scholar | Orcid

Featured Publications

Bambaravanage, T., Kumarawadu, S., & Rodrigo, A. (2016). Comparison of three under-frequency load shedding schemes referring to the power system of Sri Lanka. Engineer: Journal of the Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka, 49(1), 9.
Bambaravanage, T., Rodrigo, A. S., Kumarawadu, S. P., & Lidula, N. (2013). A new scheme of under frequency load shedding and islanding operation. Annual Transactions of the Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka, 290–296.
Dilushani, P. D. R., Nawodani, W. R. N., Bambaravanage, T., & Udayakumar, K. A. C. (2020). Soil resistivity analysis and earth electrode resistance determination. IOSR Journal of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IOSR-JEEE), 15(2), 26–35.
Bambaravanage, T., Rodrigo, A., & Kumarawadu, S. (2018). Modeling, simulation, and control of a medium-scale power system. Springer.
Bambaravanage, T., Kumarawadu, S., Rodrigo, A., & Arachchige, L. N. W. (2013). Under-frequency load shedding for power systems with high variability and uncertainty. In 2013 IEEE International Conference on Signal Processing, Computing and Control (pp. 1–6).
Bambaravanage, T., Perera, C., & Rodrigo, A. (2025). An effective stability solution for small power systems with high distributed generation. Discover Energy, 5(1), 17.
Bambaravanage, T., Rodrigo, A., & Kumarawadu, S. (2017). Designing the load shedding scheme. In Modeling, Simulation, and Control of a Medium-Scale Power System (pp. 97–120). Springer.