Conservation of threatened tree species of Udakiruwa tropical rainforest, Sri Lanka through community empowerment and stewardship

Udakiruwa rainforest fragments of Uva province, Sri Lanka exhibit significantly a high biodiversity evolved over thousands of years, allowing the natural selection of species and genotypes best suited to life of its unique location. These forest fragments are home to populations of endemic plant species, many of which are threatened due to over exploitation of forest products and agricultural expansions. The aims of this proposed project are to conserve the threatened species in Udakiruwa Forest and its ecosystem services through restoration of degraded lands and enrichment of adjacent agroforests, develop conservation ethics in the Udakiruwa local villages and in the next generation in peripheral areas, and to reduce the threat to the forests and inhabiting species through enriched home gardens and by facilitating sustainable homestead level cottage-based industries. Restoration of 35ha of forests by protecting, supporting the existing natural regeneration and planting threatened species with the participation of local community and NGOs is a key feature of the project. Based on our experience, conservation plans will be formulated enabling to replicate the procedures in other similar landscapes. The long-term sustenance of the project will be envisaged through the formulated Udakiruwa non-to-profit organization with developed conservation ethics for forest stewardship.