Saving Wetlands through Community Development
Wetland Craft - Sri Lanka
Introduction
 The production of crafts from wetland plants has great potential to support sustainable livelihoods and generate multiple benefits to society, and provide an excellent opportunity for dis-empowered people to use their existing skills to increase their level of empowerment and self-esteem.
The majority of people involved in traditional craftwork activities are impoverished rural and pre-urban women. Growth in the craft industry will provide improved socioeconomic benefits to these women and their households.
On the other hand the production of crafts from wetland plants has great potential to promote environmental sustainability of the sensitive wetlands in Sri Lanka.
 Sri Lanka’s wetlands support a diverse range of plants species suitable for woven craft Traditionally following species of wetland plants used in Sri Lanka for Craft production by rural women,
- Cyperus corymbosus – Gal Ahe
- Cyperus dehiscens – Havan
- Eleocharis plantaginea – Boru Pan
- Scirpus erectus – Gata Pan
- Schoenoplectus grossus – Thulhiriya
- Pandanus odorodissimas – Watakeiya
One of the specific adaptations of these plant species is the ability of rapidly re-growing following harvesting.
If the harvesting is beyond the plants’ capacity for renewal, the resource will be graded and the benefits derived by the users will be lost.
Therefore Best Management practices for harvesting should be introduced and promoted.
Even though historically Sri Lanka’s utilized wetland plants for craft production available knowledge, experience, published literature, lessons learn from research and development activities on wetland plants utilization, impacts of harvesting, suitable management practices are very rare Centuries old traditional knowledge on the wetland plant species management and environmentally best practices such a Sun drying, coluring of Reeds using herbal extracts etc. are rapidly disappearing.
Our Aims
Collecting, documentation and dissemination of available traditional knowledge relevant to the Management practices of wetland plant species, Traditional dyeing and crafting systems before drying off.
 To review wetland plant species used for crafts and re-examine potential community development options using wetland craft plants.
Exchange of International experience on the sustainable Management of wetland plant species and production of Wetland craft.
Identification of potential new markets for the products.
Development of guidelines for the Best Management practices for sustainable utilization of wetland plants / production techniques of marketable nature friendly craft and widely circulating among stake holders in Asia Pacific region.
Conservation through Production
The promotion of Craft Production by utilizing wetland plants species provides local people with an incentive not to destroy these wetland areas through artificial drainage, land reclamation and other impacts. Their destruction would destroy the very source of valuable raw materials that local crafters depend upon for their livelihoods.
Invitation
i.e.
We strongly believe when compared with the available knowledge through out the world on the Management of wetland species Traditional techniques of producing Craft we collected only a handful.
We invite harvesters, crafters, land managers and academics in Asia-Pacific, Africa and in Latin America to exchange their skills, knowledge and relevant information collected on utilization and management practices for wetland plants. |
