Today, Sunday, 23 May 2021, Lanka Nature Conservationist will be hosting a free online event – a special commemoration lecture to celebrate World Biodiversity Day, featuring Vidyajothy, Emeritus Prof. Sarath W. Kotagama.
Prof. Kotagama will be conducting a lecture on the topic of Covid-19 and the future conservation challenges titled “Earth is calling, are you listening?” We reached out to Prof. Kotagama to share with us what to anticipate from the lecture and a brief understanding of what to expect in post-Covid conservation in Sri Lanka.
Touching briefly on the current thinking on conservation, Prof. Kotagama shared that there is an extreme line of thinking in the field of conservation, not particularly in Sri Lanka, but globally, stating that there is a flaw in the thinking of purists who wish to draw a line between what is human variety and what is not, stating that what we identify as human variety at present was once not considered as such. However, we, as a society, have settled on an understanding that they are now standards of our society and they are now no longer part of nature but part of the manmade variety for our benefit; he shared the example of the land we currently occupy – did it not once belong to wildlife? He said this thinking of humanity reverting back to nature, going back to the traditional way of life, or doubling down on industrialisation, is a debate we have been having even prior to the pandemic. However, many appear to be on the fence about it.
He also shared his thoughts on the new wave of conservation and the more extreme views, adding that banning things is not the way to go, and regulation is the more feasible option. He said that the reason why he favours regulation over banning certain environmentally unfriendly activities is because there’s often a reason for such activities to grow to such a large scale. Taking for example the trade of exotic wildlife in the East – he said that it was a reportedly $ 50 billion industry and if you are to outright ban such an income-generating industry, then surely there are many who stand to suffer greatly. He said that realistically, it would be those at the grassroots level who will suffer the consequences while those who made the big profits at the top would largely come out of the ordeal unscathed.
He commented that one of the primary challenges that conservationists and the movement will have to face is the fast regression into the status quo. He shared that, due to the pandemic, society as a whole has been curtailed in their activities; we have been restricted. There is a lot of pining for the times that once were and what used to be, and so he said that it is possible that the moment we are relatively free from the grasp of Covid, society will soon revert back to their old ways in a hurry, without paying mind to what has been learned during this time. Therefore, it is likely that whatever conservation breakthroughs that were made during this time, would largely be put aside.
He also pointed out that once we settle into our “new normal”, it is inevitable that the country would be submerged in economic turmoil. There is no outcome where our country would come out of this without suffering some major economic setbacks, and in that case, a large part of the population is likely to have no means of income. They would have to look for alternative income-generating methods, and there is a likelihood that many would turn to the free-for-all resources we have worked so hard to protect – be it for agricultural purposes, desperate measures to increase yield, or even poaching. These are all likely events in the event of a major economic downfall.
Prof. Kotagama said that with these struggles, conservationists and those responsible for protecting our environment would have to work doubly hard in order to protect what is left because there would be many who will be fighting to survive, and the thought of conservation may not cross their minds until it is too late.
