Save 10 acres of biodiverse forest in Sri Lanka

Shortly after our last report, the International Monetary Fund approved a bailout for the Sri Lankan economy. This was incredibly good news for starting to stabilise the country’s debt and reviving much-needed goods imports. Since then, the value of the rupee has rebounded somewhat, however the day-to-day costs of living for local people are coming down much more slowly and the population continues to feel the strain.

For the Forest Healing Foundation, this definitely feels like a turning point (albeit a slow one!). With a more stable economy we can once again look towards longer term projects that make a sustained difference for forests and communities. However, we remain conscious of how the immediate financial needs of local people are integral to the success of any work we do.

So what are we working on? Some highlights from this quarter:

• Nel has been a whirlwind of activity, working with local smallholders to plant spice and mee trees;
• The Foundation office is nearly complete and we have started the recruitment process for a coordinator to be based there. We are also finalising additional conservation and tree-planting support to help grow our reach from our original two reforestation projects;
• Our Eko Land Produce community spice initiative continues to grow. If you are based in the UK, we currently have some fantastic spice gift boxes available – perfect for that friend who loves to cook or a special housewarming gift. Please email remon@ekoland.lk to order;
• We are researching and looking to trial new models for supporting smallholder livelihoods through our work, specifically through leasing land for restoration and new tree mortgaging approaches. More coming soon on this!

As always, we are eternally grateful for your support in making all of this happen. Please get in touch at info@foresthealingsrilanka.org if you have any thoughts, ideas or questions. Isthuthi.

Sending best wishes from our community to yours,

Emma, Remon, Nel and the FHF Community

Links:

• Forest Healing Foundation website