I met Kusalini when I was in Wakarei on a field visit. She peeped at me while sitting on her mother’s lap and I was busy noting down the answers her grandmother was providing me on the challenges she faces to continue her agricultural work. At first Kusalini was hesitant to come to me, a woman who was strangely dressed ...
The first session of climate talks for the year wraps up with structure and form of the new climate agreement left to be decided. The Chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Ambassador Ahmed Sareer, the Maldives’ Permanent Representative to the U.N. spoke on his expectations for the year ahead, and his thoughts on the Geneva climate talks. ...
Delegates from 194 countries who gathered in Geneva for a week long process of climate negotiations will return home with a negotiating text for the 2015 Climate Agreement which is set to reach in Paris end of this year, and to come to effect in 2020. With the 5th Assessment Report of the IPCC highlighting the need for immediate actions ...
Photo provides by Sarah Soysa Sarah Soysa is passionate about her work, a feminist working in the field of sexual and reproductive health and gender issues, she is currently reading for her masters in gender and development studies at the University of Melbourne. She is the initiator of the first hotline in Sri Lanka which provides information on safe medical ...
(Photo provided by Dilum Goonewardena) Dilum Goonewardena works at the Permanent Delegation of Sri Lanka to the UNESCO. From Sri Lanka, after moving to France for her studies. She shares her story today on what inspired her to follow her dreams. Life: An inspiration “I left Sri Lanka when I was 21, and since then I have become an independent ...
I wake up at 4 am to the sound of my son calling “tha tha tha”. He is still too young to distinguish between genders, and is happy calling everyone dad. Or at least that is what the sounds combined would mean in Sinhala. But nope, Akashiv does not think it has any difference, whether he calls his mum dad, ...
Dear All Please take ten minutes to fill this survey so as to help out in coming up on accurate details on the LGBT community in Sri Lanka and the perception of the Lankan society on the concept of living as part of the LGBT community in Sri Lanka. http://freeonlinesurveys.com/rendersurvey.asp?sid=36g21zbqdasm7kt959617#.TnAyRe7rgL8.facebook Thank you
SLYCAN is organizing its first ever photography workshop on environmental photography on the 2nd of September 2011 at 4pm to 6pm at the British Council Auditorium, Colombo. The workshop will be headed by Mr. Shinaz Mohamed, photographer and environmental activist from Maldives, Mr. Michael Chew, photographer and climate change expert living and working in Bangladesh, [...]
Alphaxard Gitau is passionate about youth empowerment, community transformation, environmental conservation, and contributing to agricultural development. He lives in Kenya, and strives to be a voice for young people working on environmental issues. He spoke on his experiences as an advocate for action on agriculture in Africa, and at the global level. Motivation Alphaxard was brought up in a ...
A youth briefing with the President of COP17, H.E Maite Nkoana-Mashabane was held at 6pm, in Mopane Meeting room in the ICC on the 2nd of December 2011. Speaking to the youth, the President noted the need for the leadership to take action and provided information on the development of negotiations on the green climate fund. Some of the extracts ...
It’s 2015, and it’s valentine’s again. I can’t remember what I did on last valentine’s or where I was on that day for that matter. My memory seems to fail me of late, and I seem to live with that in happiness. At times oblivion suits me best. I believe. At least. I type a mail to him, saying I ...
(C) Creative Commons The long awaited encyclical of Pope Francis was released today (18th June) six months ahead of the crucial climate change negotiations which will take place at the end of year in Paris. The papal encyclical, which is the highest form of teaching to be issues by the Vatican highlights key issues such as addressing the needs of ...
Seven months pregnant with a husband who leaves with two words via email “move on”. Move on he says, she stares at the mail for as long as she could, and tries not to shed tears, though they pay no head. He needs to move on, go his own way, he does not want to come back, decides to stay ...
I get ready to head out, and Aiden decides to text me at the same time. I tell him about the common candidate drama in Sri Lanka, and how some MPs are changing parties. He is not too happy about my little commentary on local politics, is worried that I would go make some random comment, get arrested and he ...
Senashia Ekanayake is a writer, who likes to describes herself as “mediating with her first quarter life crisis and contemplating life as a writer in the making.” She is motivated by two things: writing and environment and firmly believes that if one truly puts one’s heart into something that one wants to do or achieve, then on can end ...
I wear his T-shirt after a long time. It had got caught in my cloths while I was packing. Packing in a rush that is. Being a while since my eyes fell upon it, or fingers came across it. Nothing too sentimental about it, but a comfort of that washed material rubbing against my skin. It was huge, even on ...
(Image courtesy google images) Yeb Saño, one of the key negotiators on climate change recently decided to step down from his position as the Commissioner at the Climate Change Commission in the Philippines and to work with different faith groups across the world, as part of the larger global climate movement ahead of the 21st Conference of Parties of ...
I have found many a thing frustrating with regard to banks. Standing in queues while the bank employee hangs on the phone for hours, eternal waits to collect money from checks. But topped all of it is getting a loan, or rather getting information on the possibility of getting a loan. I have been having my bank account in this ...
My brain has failed to come up with any writing that is worthwhile for a while, and I blame it all on the trauma of having to put up with one painful experience two weeks ago. (Yes, those who know me know what I am referring to, go ahead and laugh you people!) I need something to blame my handicap ...
She had stayed away from the house not wanting to cry all over again. The last time she walked in to get her scan copies off the shelf where he had left it, she had ended up weeping two weeks of withheld tears. She was not in a mood to weep, to feel suffocated, and then end up lying on ...
