Ideation on policy creation; Lankan earth resources protection and human health – Part 1

Children should be made to learn daily for at least one hour on how they can appreciate and protect the earth’s resources as well as use these resources sparingly 

By Surya Vishwa

We are about to welcome the last month of yet another year. December is upon our threshold once again.

For Sri Lanka 2024 has been significant, marking a historic political change that has made the world celebrate the power of democracy.

The fact that a citizenry need not be subservient and slavish to rulers who do not care about them was shown in elections held in September and November respectively as Sri Lankans elected their President and Government.

The word government is often confused and sometimes thought of as involving only those we vote for. The people who do their duty by paying their taxes are the core part of any government. They are the bosses of politicians that they elect to see that the tax money of those who live in a nation is put to proper use. This is through sensible policies. In other words, voters are the employers of those that they send to parliament and importantly are drivers of change for policies that are meaningful. Voters are not and should not be apathetic creatures who lounge about in a lethargic stupor after elections. They are vigilantes and as the employers of their politicians should be as responsible for the policies they need created.

This means that parliament is a place that discusses issues as relevant to people and as deemed necessary by the masses provided that the public take an active interest in matters that are discussed on their behalf. This in turn means that we need to assist those we employ as our political representatives to make decisions that directly impact us.

Transform the bad into good

The media is an extension of the people. In an ideal world the media should represent the people not so much to cover the bad news that surrounds us which seems to be the only news in general, but to transform the bad into good. The media then has to be far thinking and visionary, actively engaging in seeing opportunities to be agents of change for strategising the metamorphosis of the negative into positive. This is easier said than done. It requires for the media industry to engage in introspection – as a monk or nun would do – asking questions as to whether reporting sensationally highlighting outrage, conflict, hate and doubt should continue as the way forward. Is there another way? 

Can the media be a strategist for transforming and integrating the many vicissitudes of potential for transformation looping in and integrating the kaleidoscopic spheres – from the spiritual to the artistic, from the natural world to the amphitheatres of leisure, business and entrepreneurship, from the bodies of knowledge and pristine abundance that are hidden in the deep earth to the need for man to be healed and combine all of this for the core need of every human; to have his share of earth and its grace, to live peacefully with another human with the just and equal right with which mother earth functions when it feeds all of us equally. Whether we are surrounded by desert or ocean or forests or rivers or valleys, the earth does not discriminate or starve. Man is taught by nature as to what it needs to do, to survive in whatever sparse or abundant atmosphere.

A meaninglessness wreck

But what are we teaching ourselves? How are we living? How are we earning our livelihood? What are we imparting through our education institutes? Does what we teach merit the word ‘education’? Or are we merely regulating our future generations to be narcissistic crammers of that which is shrouded ghoulishly as knowledge but which when unpacked is a meaninglessness wreck.

Thus, as we end another year, the Harmony page, which was initiated in 2019 as an alternative reality to what can be achieved through the realm of mass communication, will feature a series of policy ideation based on media research centred writings published in this page for the past seven years. We will today focus on the protection of the natural world covering the need for integrated policy making in Sri Lanka, weaving in aspects connected with garbage disposal, education, arts, media and peacebuilding, including also that which is categorised as spiritual and economy related. Thereby we provide recommendations for mainstreaming the need for building up discipline and civil responsibility of the citizenry in protecting and conserving their environment and in waste management. 

These as below, are based on the many interviews we have conducted across Sri Lanka, most of which has been published segmented into writings appearing in this page.

Thus, below are recommendations on how we can instil public awareness and take needed action to care for our natural resources because polluting and poisoning these would only negatively impact ourselves.

Recommendations

1. For all children from age of four to be taught through play about the natural world that surrounds them and the resources of this land.

2. For primary school education, art based entrepreneur units to be initiated through community groups to create safe play items using throw away material such as cloth, bottles and plastic bags. These will educate the children on the item itself used for the creation and impart a message on the protection and conservation of earth and its bounty. Highlighted could be the concept of the earth as the mother.

3. Teacher trainings to be initiated that will train teachers of all grades to sensitise themselves on the need to protect the earth and to educate them on the facts that this earth is collapsing under human rubbish. All the research done so far indicates that earth resources can last only up to around 2050 to be taught to all teachers so they could first eradicate their own complacency, indifference and ignorance.

4. Curricula for students and educators to be developed for all grades as befitting, educating children and teachers on the diversity of natural resources of the world and how they are threatened, and, focusing especially on Sri Lanka. Children should be made to learn daily for at least one hour on how they can appreciate and protect the earth’s resources as well as use these resources sparingly, such as water. For these teachings the children are to spend their time outdoors. As in countries such as Japan, children of all grades to be trained and mobilised to do all garbage collecting, segmenting and clearing by themselves as well as to be trained in skills such as setting up rainwater harvesting tanks in every school as well as herb and vegetable gardens.

5. For children to be taught ancient methods of all cultures in the world that use plants as medicine and to learn about the impact that indiscriminate poisoning of the soil can have on humans, the soil and waterways.

6. For earth entrepreneur units to be set up in each school for children to experiment with making compost and selling them within the school by using the food refuse of the school.

7. To make children spend time in creating a forest garden in all schools that will have the traditional and indigenous medicinal plants and trees of the country. For mediation and art classes to be conducted in these mini school forests. For children to learn forest first aid – as to how the resources of the forest can heal a human. For children to engage in breathing exercises within these forests they create to enable them to have better mental function and lung health by learning practically how a forest benefits humans. Parallelly for each child to learn how the faith they belong to (religion) expounds the teachings of nature conservation. This would require for the teachers to work in-depth with the religious institutions connected to different faiths.

8. As above, for comparative spirituality and peacebuilding text books to be developed using nature as a prod and these to be developed highlighting the concepts of justice, equality, peacebuilding, land-rights and citizenry rights for all human beings. These textbooks should be aimed at training children to become future policy creators and should entail global research on both the natural world and the need for justice and peace. This is to create a future generation that will not tolerate injustice and war which ruin the earth and all in it through bombs and gunfire.

9. To restructure in entirety how English is taught in Sri Lanka and to teach this subject as relevant to Sri Lanka and its natural resources as well as the dire need to build up responsible citizens. Therefore, for the subject of English to focus on Sri Lankans retaining the knowledge of their traditions, history, culture and indigenous knowledge alongside the vast realm of the natural world of this country.

10.Regular excursions to be made by students of all grades across Sri Lanka to carry out responsible earth cleaning missions with the collaboration of institutes such as the municipal councils and children made to regularly make their creative recommendations to these institutions which would be duly recorded and kept. 

11.For schools and universities to initiate their own garbage segmenting units and simultaneously create recycling hubs. Each school and university recycling centres are linked to the macroeconomic arena where there are to be sale units in all towns and tourism locations. For business organisations to support these initiatives by extending their own product creation through these units.

12.For there to be separate days designated by the municipality for clearing out bio and non-biodegradable items such as food, paper, plastic bottles, glass bottles, batteries. For the Municipal authorities to get the active support of Ministries such as the Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Foreign Affairs to engage in study tours in countries such as Singapore, Korea and Japan which have changed from slum like atmospheres to be exemplarily clean and which have succeeded in establishing a civic consciousness in its people that prevents haphazard garbage disposal.

13.To commence a national endeavour in transforming Meethotamulla garbage dump into a Earth Healing Peace park and tourist centre. To have a timeline from 2024 December to 2025 December for the preliminary work in this regard and then till 2027 for the completion of it.

14.As above, for the President’s Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to take the leadership through the Ministry of Environment engaging with countries such as Japan, Korea and Singapore and other supportive countries, to seek assistance as needed for making the above a reality.

15.For Public Health Inspectors to actively engage in field based duties and with households on daily inspections that will commence with checking if the house has had a proper sanitation based clearance set up. 

16.For all tourist establishments, especially home stay operators to report monthly to the municipality for getting approval for the functioning of their businesses by proving that they are disposing of the garbage in a manner that will focus on recycling and reusing.

17.For plastic to be completely banned and investment to be made for research on using natural produce such as grass and weeds for the use of plant based material for creating bags. For all businesses producing and selling items in Sri Lanka such as shampoos and beauty products to shift to alternatives that can use strong cardboard as done in milk cartons and to follow a system that encourages recycling and reusing of these accompanied perhaps with customer discounts.

18.For all places of worship to preach mandatorily about environment protection and cleansing and civic responsibility as taught by their religious leaders. For all Sunday schools of all faiths to follow the same route and to have children being responsible for keeping these premises clean.

19.For all tourist locations to be regularly inspected by Public Health Inspectors (PHI) specifically mountainous locations such as Nuwara Eliya to ensure that unplanned housing tenements in the mountain bases overlooking water bases such as waterfalls are not polluted.

20.For every household living close-by to an earth resource such as a river or a waterfall to renew their housing permit, etc., regularly based on the inspection of the authorities on how responsible they are to their surroundings.

21.For all those who dispose of garbage as municipality workers to be paid adequately and provided all sanitary provisions that do not threaten their health. For them to be regularly included in awareness camps to be carried out in schools and universities on the harm of irresponsible and hap hazard waste disposal.

22.For Public Health Inspectors (PHI) to strictly regulate how hospitals segment their waste and ensure that they learn from countries which have strict regulations in doing this. Regular study tours are recommended for PHIs to countries which have strong policies on waste clearing by hospitals. This is a serious matter in Sri Lanka and needs immediate attention.

23.For artistes to be encouraged to join in the efforts at having a systematic garbage disposal system in Sri Lanka and for the initiating at special musical shows, dramas, book publishing through poetry and short stories and the launch of specially dedicated environment protection and civil responsibility centred book fairs in all three languages across the country.

24.For writers’ groups to be created in all public libraries around the country for the above purpose of creating content that will actively and authentically protect the environment.

25.For the State to work with entities such as the Chamber of Commerce and the Board of investment to re-look at the collective integration of tourism, arts and the global publishing industry with earth resource responsibility and re-look at the concept of investment anew.

26.For the State to re-look at State owned land across the country and to segment these amongst the landless citizenry across the country, especially looking at areas where there is non-hygienic habitation near water based resources such as rivers. The prioritising of these families receiving the justice of a live-able housing with proper sanitation and garbage disposal recommended.

27.For all university students and academics to take turns to dispose of garbage every month working with the municipal authorities with the joining in of school students and teachers.

28.For the film corporation of Sri Lanka to undertake initiating the production of one film per year on the success in responsible garbage disposal as undertaken by the State.

29.Strict fines to be enforced on all households that do not comply with the regulations on waste disposal, recycling and management.

30.For the Municipality to engage daily in public announcing the new Sri Lanka to be created that has zero tolerance for irresponsible littering.

31.For professional training to be given on recycling items such as batteries and glass under the leadership of entities such as the Chamber of Commerce and support of Foreign Missions as needed. For the entire private sector to be mobilised towards recycling. 

32.For all State and private banks to have serious discussions about the need to encourage recycling emphasised businesses and to initiate diverse schemes that will create a recycling-reuse based business trend.

33.For the State to have discussions with importers on the non-importing of products in non-biodegradable covering.

34.For local rural entrepreneurs to be encouraged to have their beauty and related products such as toothpastes to be made through herbs without use of chemicals and to find new ways of selling them without use of plastic uncasing.

35.For a nationwide fundraising drive to begin that will result in dustbins for segmented refuse to be set up every one kilometre with sign boards on where to dispose of trash. All private business establishments are encouraged in this endeavour to provide a percentage of their profits towards this cause.

36.Fundraising also to be initiated for CCTV cameras to be installed especially in town areas. All towns and bus stations as well as railway stations to be installed with CCTV cameras and to have monitoring units until the nation gets used to discipline.

37.The assistance of the Tri-Forces could be obtained for the cleaning up of all towns and setting up of streamlined garbage disposal systems.

38.The Tri-Forces could also have their own recycle units and develop a team who can provide entrepreneurship based recycle training.

39.Creation of strongly functional Environment Police units are recommended which will work with Tourist Police units.

40.Throwing garbage from within buses is to be fined in a system that functions with Environment police and with the support of bus drivers. Environment police personnel could be deployed in civil attire.

41.The ban of plastic is to be very strictly enforced legally.

42.All beaches to be declared as environment protection zones with segmented garbage Note: The Harmony page will continue this policy ideation series based on our past media interviews and publications.

References:

 https://www.ft.lk/harmony_page/Preventing-threat-of-Nuwara-Eliya-being-turned-into-garbage-site/10523-769307

https://www.ft.lk/front-page/Of-mountains-waterfalls-and-garbage-wars/44-769600

https://www.ft.lk/article/611329/Garbage-%E2%80%93-A-look-at-Sri-Lanka--South-Asia-and-beyond