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| Friday, 23 January 2004 |
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Lanka wins 2004 Equator Prize by Ramani Kangaraarachchi
The Rush and Reed Conservation and Diversification Program (RRCDP) funded by the Global Environmental Facility, Small Grants Program of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Sri Lanka, has been chosen as one of 26 outstanding finalist programs for the 2004 Equator Prize. Some Committee members with a community representative, Somawathie Weerakoon, will leave for Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia early next month to participate in the awards ceremony to recognise the 26 Equator Prize finalists and formal announcement of the six winning initiatives and the 7th Conference of Parties (COP7) to the Convention on Biological Diversity. The six winning programs will receive an award of US$ 30,000 each to support their work. Somawathie, a 53-year-old community representative is one of the earliest members of the project recognised nationally in the Designer Fair 2003 when she earned the 'Designer Award in the RCDP for her 'Divi Adiya' designed mat (footprint of the leopard). The project has its training centre, showroom and sales outlet in Gamagedara in Ingiriya. It was also represented at the Tendence Fair in Germany in August last year, with support from the Export Development Board. The Equator Prize honours community projects that represent outstanding efforts to reduce poverty through conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. The Equator initiative Technical Committee evaluated 420 nominated projects from 77 countries within the Equatorial Belt and 27 have been recommended for final consideration by the jury for the 2002 award. The RCDP through the NGO, Committee for People's Rights supports over 60 women in Horana in the Kalutara District. The objectives of the project include the revival and development of the traditional cultivation and craft of reed weaving, use of natural dyes, research and development of designs and markets for reed products and the propagation of micro-land units consisting of the paddy field the reed bed and home garden as a viable and sustainable economic entity. Up to now the project has trained 20 farmers in the concept of turning fallow fields into micro-land units. The Equator initiative is a worldwide movement which reduces poverty and sustains biodiversity by identifying and rewarding innovative local partnerships, fostering community to community learning and contributing to knowledge generation for advocacy and policy impart awards biennially. |
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