Ford cashes in on environment conservation
US- based Ford Motor Company in its green initiative recently provided assistance to environmental programmes in Sri Lanka worth US$ 15, 000 that would help develop the IFSPopham Arboretum in Dambulla and protect the Dediyagala Forest Reserve.
Two organisations namely The Tree Society of Sri Lanka and the Wanasarana Thurulatha, Swechcha Society were joint winners of a competition conducted by Ford. The grant of US$ 15,000 will be split between the joint winners, the company stated under its 2012 Conservation and Environmental Grants Programme in Sri Lanka.
The Tree Society of Sri Lanka would be involved in conserving the IFS- Popham Arboretum in Dambulla and upgrade its education and research facilities.
It was pointed out that the second organisation would conserve the bio- diversity of the Dediyagala Forest Reserve of Sri Lanka by establishing joint forest management with buffer zone communities.
The said projects stood out of the Ford programme's panel of judges due to their " usefulness, originality and potential for wider application across the country, Future Automobiles Ltd. Chief Operating Officer Sujeeva Premaratne said at a media briefing in Colombo.
Total number of submissions for the competition amounted to 35 out of which seven were shortlisted, it was stated. The panel of judges included Sri Jayawardenapura University Forestry and Environmental Science Department Dr. Priyan Perera; Institute of Personnel Management Chief Executive Officer Dayan Seneviratne and SriLankan Airlines Senior Captain/ Instructor Pilot Captain Marlon Perera.