Everything else.. Jayantha Wijesingha: on a Journey to Protect Sri Lanka’s Forests

Jayantha Wijesingha: on a Journey to Protect Sri Lanka’s Forests

2021 Mar 2

Jayantha Wijesingha grew up in Balangoda, where his home bordered several protected areas and where his love for nature began. Holding an MBA and CIM, he is a Marketer by profession but eventually turned to his true calling: conservation, in 2012.

Through his profession and while working with newspapers, he did several supplements and co-ordinated with environmental organisations on special environment days like Earth Day, Water Day, Wildlife Day and even Earth Hour. This was where his interest in conservation was born. He eventually came across an opportunity to engage with the WWF, Earthwatch, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and Royal Society, UK on a research programme in Borneo. There he was awarded Climate Champion by Earthwatch, which was also the turning point of his career. After coming back to Sri Lanka, feeling motivated and inspired, together with like-minded individuals, he decided to create his own organisation. This was the birth of Rainforest Protectors of Sri Lanka.

It has been ten years since the launch of Rainforest Protectors Sri Lanka, a non-profit environmental organisation on a quest to protect the last remaining rainforests (such as Sinharaja and Kanneliya) and threatened ecosystems in Sri Lanka not only through conservation projects but also through environmental activism which is driven primarily through volunteer support. Rainforest Protectors responds to the urgent threats faced by Sri Lankan rainforests and wildlife by engaging in investigations, reporting and finding resolutions through discussions with relevant authorities and stakeholders. Undertaking this difficult mission comes with a range of different challenges, says Jayantha.

  1. The lack of eco-literacy.
  2. The lack of participation as a community due to a lack of awareness, a lack of fight and spirit and a lack of rebellion by the people.
  3. The lack of conservation strategy, policy or direction.
  4. The lack of support in terms of media and the judiciary.
  5. The lack of the mass’ concern – with only a small group of individuals working on a regular basis with a lack of support and a lack of infrastructure.

These are only a few challenges that are faced by conservationists in Sri Lanka. However, Jayantha also has had to overcome a lot of personal challenges.

This included personal funding since the inception of Rainforest Protectors in 2011 to 2017. For 7 years he and his team worked purely voluntarily for the sake of the environment. These challenges would frustrate anyone and cause them to give up, but not Jayantha. He describes Sri Lanka as ‘heaven occupied by demons who destroy it on a continuous basis. He strongly believes in being the ‘somebody’ who would step up and make a change. He is also firmly convinced that the power lies with us and that if everybody gives up due to reasons of having too many issues to handle, or too much political power at stake or simply because you believe you don’t have the strength to change things, then you are letting the destroyers win.

Jayantha genuinely loves being a conservationist. Some of his favourite aspects of his career include seeing a mountain that was supposed to be decimated standing tall, ensuring the protection of a certain ecosystem, be it a sand mining site or a soil excavation site, protecting real acres of forest by purchasing and conserving them, planting trees, reforestation and protecting riverine ecosystems from hydro development projects. He also gains pleasure from not only being able to help people and solve their problems but also being able to formulate and influence policy.

He tells me that a cause which is close to his heart is the campaign Rainforest Protectors did against oil palm, a very common plant found in wet zone areas also known as the ‘devil’s crop’. They rallied, mobilised villages and spoke to politicians from all parties. They managed to stop a project to plant 20,000 hectares of oil palm through not only Government policy but also a presidential directive. Being able to lead this campaign successfully was his biggest achievement, he recalls. 

Another project that is dear to him is the Rainforest Protectors Trust Project where they have set up a trust to buy unprotected and threatened pieces of land such as rainforests that are being held under private ownership. A few pieces of land have already been bought and are protected forever. Jayantha would like to see the trust acquiring 1000 acres of forest lands within the next five years. 

As a self-taught conservationist, Jayantha feels that if someone would have tried to teach or groom him, he may not have been the person he is today. He evolved to be a conservationist through his exposure locally, internationally, through media and the corporate sector – and that has led to him becoming a strong campaigner, activist and lobbyist. 

Out of curiosity, I ask him what animal he would choose to be, and he responded ‘bee’. He went on to explain that Einstein once said that humanity cannot survive longer than four years without bees. Similarly, he believes that bees are critical to any ecosystem and for the survival of mankind. He admits to it being a big responsibility and did consider that he would have a short life but he thought that the service he would be able to provide outweighs the cons. 

Jayantha’s advice to budding conservationists:
  1. Don’t listen to anyone- there are plenty of things that are possible, you should learn the lesson yourself.
  2. Study the environmental/natural resources that this country has, past Government policies and their developmental impact, the importance of ecosystems and the conservation issues facing Sri Lanka.
  3. Understand and study things better (‘studying’ does not refer to degrees but research) by learning from the past, people and through a lot of reading.
  4. Be honest, have the fighter spirit and rebellion blood. Do your best and never hesitate.
  5. Be true to your cause and never bend down to the will of any politician and business.

Jayantha expressed his heartbreak and stress caused by the rampant environmental destruction taking place in Sri Lanka. But what keeps him going is hope. The hope that future generations can have a better environment to live in. The hope that lawmakers will listen. The hope that people will understand the importance of the environment. The hope that we will one day come together to fight for our oxygen, our water, our soil. 

Jayantha noted that only 1 out of 10,000 people are concerned about the environment. Out of a population of 21 million, if at least 1% showed solidarity by writing, talking, emailing, sending letters, and petitioning, that’s 210,000 people who can make a change. 

After speaking to Jayantha, I am inspired to be a part of this 1%; the question is, are you?

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