Deforestation and the human-animal conflict have become dangerously intertwined as natural habitats shrink. Wildlife is continuously forced closer to human settlements. The numbers indicate a sobering picture. In 2024, the world lost…
The most devastating natural disaster to hit Sri Lanka in decades, Cyclone Ditwah, has forced the country into its most severe climate-related humanitarian crisis in recent memory. Sri Lanka is only beginning…
Forests play a crucial role far beyond simply absorbing water. For generations, people viewed them as sponges but we now understand they are sophisticated water management systems. Forests support plant growth, regulate…
Sri Lanka’s latest natural disaster once again exposed deep structural weaknesses not only in disaster preparedness but also in governance economic resilience and regional connectivity. Amid this crisis India’s response stood out…
Few taxes are intrinsically democratic or undemocratic. They are just a way of funding government. But there are occasional exceptions, including a very significant one in Sri Lanka currently: the taxes raised…
One year after its meteoric rise to power, the NPP risks losing critical momentum and squandering an unparalleled opportunity of using its political capital to build a just peace in the war…
Comrade Rohana Wijeweera, the founder of the JVP, was arrested and subsequently murdered 36 years ago. His disappearance in 1989 symbolised the turbulent end of the JVP’s second insurrection, extreme political violence…
Communities During a recent discussion with members of the Islamic community in Mawanella, an elderly Muslim woman shared a thought that captured the essence of Sri Lanka’s long struggle toward reconciliation. “Women…
The 2026 budget proposal to uplift plantation workers through higher daily wages is a positive step. Yet the decision to grant attendance incentives directly from the government raises deeper questions about governance,…
When Industries Minister Sunil Handunnetti declared that aswesuma beneficiaries “should be ashamed” and called the cash transfer scheme “like begging legally,” he did more than outrage a large section of the public;…
The year 2024 was a watershed for Sri Lanka with two national elections held in quick succession: a presidential poll in September and parliamentary elections in November. These were the first national…
Mannar stands at the frontline of a new conflict: the cumulative impact of large scale development projects, in particular the proposed wind farms. While renewable energy is crucial for Sri Lanka’s future,…
The Mannar peninsula, a wind-blown stretch of land known for its migratory birds, shallow lagoons and resilient fishing villages, now finds itself at the centre of one of Sri Lanka’s fiercest environmental…
Extreme weather is no longer a distant threat; it’s a daily reality in Sri Lanka. Heatwaves scorch the lowlands while landslides tear through hill country villages. As these disasters grow more frequent…
In 1833 when the Colebrooke-Cameron reforms introduced constitutional governance to Ceylon, they inadvertently triggered a profound social transformation. While governance remained under a powerful governor appointed by the British Crown, it created…
