Environmental Sustainability

A healthy environment is critical for human survival and wellbeing. Environmental degradation has the potential to increase livelihood vulnerability and exacerbate tensions and conflicts within and between communities. Sewalanka aims to integrate principles of environmental sustainability into all of our operations and programs. We:

• Promote ecologically sound technologies and practices,
• Support initiatives to build up the natural resource base,
• Strengthen local capacities for environmental management, and
• Seek to minimize and mitigate negative environmental impacts.

Sewalanka is a member of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) National Committee. We partner with the Ministry of Environment, the Central Environmental Authority, the Department of Forestry, the Department of Wildlife, the Coast Conservation Authority, universities, research institutions, UN agencies, local NGOs, private companies and other groups to promote environmental conservation.

We consider environmental sustainability a cross-cutting issue to be integrated into all of our activities. Based on community interest, the following initiatives have been developed with a specific environmental focus:

• Supporting community conservation initiatives in areas bordering the Knuckles and Sinharaja World Heritage Sites, the Kanneliya Forest Reserve, Wilpattu National Park, Minneriya National Park and Yala National Park

• Facilitating mangrove rehabilitation, coast conservation and beach cleaning in Ampara, Batticaloa, Trincomalee, Galle and Puttalam

• Initiating a tank ecosystem restoration program in Anuradhapura

• Coordinating environmental awareness and education programs for children and youth

• Developing community bio-monitoring programs that contribute to the conservation and management of local resources

• Supporting the installation of microhydro and solar renewable energy systems

• Assisting international bodies with their environmental protection efforts in Sri Lanka

For more information about Sewalanka's environment work, please contact environment@sewalanka.org or visit our newsletter page to see recent articles about our work.