Bridging the Gap: Pursuing Equity and Sustainability in Environmental Justice

We have sponsored a vital protection plan for the endangered Sri Lankan Elephant and Environmental law internships to train young lawyers in Sri Lanka in order to engage in public environmental litigation, in partnership with the Centre for Environmental Justice, who are connected to the Friends of the Earth. This is another means whereby young lawyers will understand every aspect of environmental law and will be trained to stand up and fight to defend and protect the environment in the courts.

In October 2024 we visited Centre for Environmental Justice (CEJ), 20A, Kuruppu road, Colombo 08. Just behind Cotta Road railway station.
We were better informed of enormous environmental destruction in Sri Lanka and practical difficulties in making legal challenges in the courts. Hemantha Withanage informed us that CEJ was engaging with Tamil speaking Veddas and Vedda Chief Uruwarigayalage Wanniaththo.</P

As a means of supporting environmental protection, you may know that we have has raised funds, for Legal Intern Scholarships, at the Centre for Environmental Justice (CEJ), Sri Lanka. The object being to encourage and develop environmental lawyers in Sri Lanka.
We were impressed by the young Legal Officers Samadi Hansani, Kanchana Balachandra and Thushini Jayasekara at CEJ. They spoke passionately about the many difficulties experienced and highlighted, the difficulty in finding like minded lawyers, the absence of experienced legal practitioners who are willing to take on environmental cases pro bono and/or for reduced rates and the frequent lack of sympathy and/or hostility of judges in the courts.

Since 2019, are working in partnership with the Centre for Environmental Justice (CEJ).
The Law needs lawyers to enforce it. This project will inspire and educate a generation of fearless Sri Lankan Environmental Lawyers.

We aim to raise more funds for the CEJ legal internship project at the 19th Tsunami Memorial Reception on 3 May 2024.