Anuradha Madugalla

Dr Anuradha Madugalla is a Lecturer in Software Engineering at Deakin University and an emerging global expert in inclusive software engineering. This research area focuses on designing technology that works for everyone, including people with disabilities and other vulnerable communities. Her research applies software engineering methods to build accessible, human-centred technologies, with a focus on two high-stakes domains: disaster management and digital health.

She has collaborated with government agencies, disability organisations and industry partners across Australia and the Asia-Pacific region to co-design tools that meet the needs of communities that are too often left out of the design process. She has worked internationally, with partners in Indonesia and Sri Lanka, to explore inclusivity and investigate accessibility gaps in early warning systems.

Her work has been recognised through nine competitive grants (including an MRFF), over 40 peer-reviewed publications, and the 2024 Asian-Australian Leadership Award in Education, Science and Medicine. She was selected as a Deakin Ambassador to Science Meets Parliament 2026, where she presented her disaster resilience research to Australian parliamentarians.

She leads the RISE (Research in Inclusive Software Engineering) Group, which is an international network that works on research initiatives that look into developing inclusive software for disaster management - https://inclusivesoftware.net/