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@Atsukot wrote:
Connect Moderators are Local Guides just like you and me, moderating Connect side-by-side with Googlers to help improve the experience for everyone. You may see them welcoming newcomers, explaining the program, answering questions, and sharing their knowledge with others.

Each month, we share some personal insights from our Connect Moderators. This month, meet @IlankovanT from Sri Lanka.

Name: Ilankovan Thushyantha

Location: Batticaloa, Sri Lanka

What I love about being a Local Guide: Being a Local Guide is so much fun for me. I enjoy capturing 360 photographs of the places I travel and creating virtual tours for people who cannot travel as I do. I have been a photography enthusiast from my childhood. Writing genuine reviews of the places I visit also gives me soulful contentment. Overall, being a Local Guide completes me.

Why I'm a Connect Moderator: I want to help others who have questions on Google Maps and want to make Connect a better platform for everyone to ask and clarify their questions regarding the practical use of Google Maps. This keeps me more involved and always keeps me busy replying to threads and responding to people on Connect. I think this is what made me a moderator.

My favorite place to explore: I love exploring nature, especially rainforests, and also I enjoy snorkeling/diving in the ocean enjoying the beauty of the marine life. The blue ocean makes my mind and body relax, forgetting the outer world.

My favorite type of contribution(s) to make on Google Maps: My all-time favorite aspect is adding my 360 photos to Google Maps, also I enjoy creating virtual tours and writing reviews on visited places. Also, I love sharing the message of being a Local Guide with the community. I’ve hosted quite a lot of meet-ups so far gathering youth, differently abled and other members of the society. Through this, I am sure I have influenced many other people from my community to contribute to Google Maps in a genuine manner.

Languages I read/write/speak fluently: English, Tamil

Places I'd like to visit: Mount Everest will be my next dream destination to visit.

One thing I'd like everyone to know about me: I am a nature lover who has photographic eyes which captures whatever I see then and there. I love sharing the message of sustainable resource utilization and accessibility. I have hosted many meet-ups such as beach cleaning, mapping green for free rain and the use of Google Maps for differently abled people. In essence, I am a social animal who loves to contribute to Google Maps.

A photo of Local Guide Ilankovan taking a 360 photo in Anuradhapura. Meet-up in Anuradhapura with no participants - but Ilankovan held a 360 walk alone around the Dagoba and “meet-up” with great Street View for Google maps
(Reference: [RECAP] Anuradhapura Photo Walk)

A photo of Local Guide Ilankovan standing in front of a Google Cloud Advanced Solutions Lab sign
We hope you’ve enjoyed getting to know @IlankovanT. Say hi or ask him a question below as he has a lot to share about Google Maps and maps in general.

Interested in becoming a Connect Moderator? Learn more here.

Interested in learning about other Connect Moderators?
Learn more about Ermes - ermest @ December 2017
Learn more about Ivan - iyudhi @ January 2018
Learn more about Karen - KarenVChin @ February 2018
Learn more about Ludwig - LudwigGermany @ March 2018
Learn more about Farid - FaridMonti @ April 2018