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Suwaskathi local seed farming is a small organization formed by thirty organic farmers of the Wahamangollawa community. Wahamangollawa is a rural village twenty kilo meters away from the Anuradhapura city and a home to one thousand families . Mr. Hemapala is the President of the organization. Mr. Hemapala is a native of Wahamangollawa, and a humble organic farmer, an ardent believer in and proponent of organic, sustainable living, and a gently fierce defender of his region’s traditional culture. He encourages anyone with even a passing interest in living off the grid, growing their own food, building a home, farming, or an interest in more general environmental issues to explore his their village that is typically a refuge for learning about, practicing, and enjoying wholesome and sustainable living. Thinking very seriously about the threat of peak of global warming and the environmental deterioration and its’ impact on humans’ health, Wahamangollawa as a community is pioneeri...

The past few years have seen several significant social, economic, environmental and climatic changes in Sri Lanka that have eroded the social contract between citizen and government in the country, which have strengthened the case for the opposition movement, and irreparably damaged the legitimacy of the current regime. Climate Change has created tremendous social unrest in the past, and seen as a driver of social unrest but this risk is glossing over the real root causes. More recently, the massive mound of garbage in Meethotamulla which collapsed in Sri Lanka, killing 19 people and forcing more than 600 others to flee their homes has reinforced the idea that if we are to address and resolve the drivers of unrest in the country, these changes will have to be better explored and exposed, in adapting strategic, innovative approaches and models. When any social context overcome language barriers, disputes and conflicts can be tackled, promoting positive and vibrant social networks, pea...

Wijerama shops set ablaze is an incident that clearly shows us how the climate in Sri Lanka is prone to religious and ethnic tensions today. Although, the general public often feels safe to beileve that war is over and peace is sustained, a series of these events outs all of us into a fragile state of peace.  Through this article, we aim to inquire from a conflict transformation view point, how religious perspectives maybe useful when engaging with conflict to bring about a positive outcome, and generate awareness of better and non-violent ways of how to deal with diversity. Diversity in the realms of culture, religion, language, ideology and ways of thinking in a context where conflict is an inescapable factor in human progress. Promotion and awareness of conflict transformation tools, it is envisioned, will pave way to society’s appreciation of the idea of diversity-and-interdependence as an asset instead of an encumbrance. Such a transformation is needed to propel conflicte...

My first field visit was to Galle on a bright Friday morning. It’s been ages since my last visit to Galle, I was excited as so was everyone else. We visited Galle on April 19- 20, 2013 with the expectations of establishing four new youth focus groups from the major Singhalease, Tamil, Muslim and Hindu communities for Voice of Image (VOI) project in the Southern Province. I was briefed on the scope of the project and activities to follow- up prior to my visit as a facilitator. The objective of extending the VOI Youth Photography Project to Sothern Province was to enrich the lives of youth in the region by introducing them to photography as a means for self-expression and an excellent opportunity for personal growth. We work with rural youth hailing from diverse communities,13 and above years of age, who face a variety of challenges in their lives on a daily basis, and who struggle with a combination of poverty, unemployment and deprive enrichment programs and opportunities, through phot...

We all arrived at Mr. Hemapala’s house on Saturday evening, a day prior to the workshop. The Batticaloa and Vahamalgollawa youth warmly welcomed us to the group with beautiful lotus flowers. Lavarias and a sweet cup of tea were served that helped us to relieve the lost spirits after a long tiresome journey. After managing to sit with all groups to learn about their experiences in coming to a village for the first time and the challenges they faced on their way, our team’s eldest brother Vasanth moved into the center of the garden and invited all youth groups to form a large circle. At a glance we realized that this was going to be a difficult task due to the large number of participants, however, with the support of all CPBR staff and the villagers, the impossible task was made possible. We all looked at each other for the first time, for some it was the first time they had ever planned of staying with a youth member from a different religious and ethnic background for three consecut...

It was an unforgettable field experience I had with the youth as a facilitator in 2013. We often rely on funds to make our social projects more successful, but the below field experience was one that heavily depended on the communities' efforts to do something for their own good, whereas, social organizations often try to carry out initiatives that support the community in direct means. So, I find it to be a unique experience that will continue to inspire me to carry out grassroots level work based on some of the lessons learnt on the ground. Hope you enjoy reading my story! Background On 23 -25 June 2013 Centre for Peace Building and Reconciliation (CPBR) in collaboration with NEXT-GEN 1 organized their first ever environmental workshop. It was an interactive experimental and experiential learning workshop that brought nearly 43 youth from six local villages to Vahamalgollawa to explore environmental issues affecting an individual, community and the world at lar...