Erudite, yet humble and simple man
The demise of Dr Jayampathy Samarakoon, ‘ Sam’ to his friends and colleagues, was a deep shock. It is difficult to fathom that he is no more – most disturbing is we have lost a great mind that we turned to when we wanted wisdom.
Sam was a product of Trinity College where it is said that he was always looking for new ‘things’ – for the curious mind. He got his BSc in Zoology from Colombo, and had an academic career at the University of Kelaniya, where he taught ecology and fisheries biology. He was a recipient of a Fulbright-Hays Scholarship and completed his PhD at the Illinois State University, US. His doctoral work was on ecology of estuarine fish – a theme close to his heart. Later on, he won a Commonwealth Academic Fellowship and spent a year at the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne working on tropical coastal ecology. Later, he was felicitated by Trinity College OBA for his pre-eminence in ecology and environmental sciences and for outstanding national and international service.
I first met Sam when I was a visiting lecturer at the University of Kelaniya; I have to admit that those short meetings were rather perfunctory. I really met him later on when he was attached to a Dutch consulting company which had undertaken a study on the Muthurajawela wetland. I was at the meeting representing the Coconut Research Institute as there was an interest to expand coconut cultivation in some parts of the wetland. Sam was there to expound the virtues of sustainable management of the wetlands to support the community. The meeting ended, but we kept on talking – my first introduction to practical aspects of wetland management and coastal ecology. I went away with a deep satisfaction of talking to someone who knew his ‘onions’, and we would continue to meet on and off, primarily at Muthurajawela and on occasion in his office in Colombo to discuss many matters, including planting coconut in the homegardens of those abutting the wetland.
In due course, Sam produced a number of papers for the Greater Colombo Economic Commission, which I think was the agency with an interest in the Muthurajawela wetland. He produced the profile of the wetland and extended his studies to the Negombo lagoon, a very rich repository of fish providing livelihood to many.
Sam’s recognition of the utility of wetlands was different. Normally, wetland management takes a predominantly conservation approach without due regard to the consideration of socio-economic situation of the dependent communities. He was mindful of the impacts of conservation approaches on the livelihoods of communities and their well-being, and always had a balanced view of these two aspects. Small fishing communities living near the Negombo lagoon will bear testimony to the empathy shown by Sam.
The tsunami of December 2004 devastated the coastal areas in many parts of the country causing the tragic deaths of nearly 35,000 people. Sam’s knowledge was most sought after during the post-tsunami period, when the need of the hour was to restore the ecosystems, bring about sustainable management, and provide a framework for the Government to act in the future.
Sam was responsible for the initial damage assessment of the coastal ecosystems. He tirelessly spent time to provide critical views on restoration of ecosystems. It was a time when many organisations received overseas funding for ecosystem restoration, and a popular activity was to plant mangroves. There were cries to plant a million mangrove plants. It is in this backdrop that Sam provided much-needed technical expertise to warn of the consequences of haphazard planting of mangroves in our lagoon and coastal systems. For example, in Batticaloa and Negombo lagoons, people planted mangroves for land accretion and then expanded their dwellings. Sam undertook studies to provide answers to these many questions – land accretion, changes in hydrology, etc. which proved very valuable to framing guidelines for mangrove planting and their management. In this connection, his immense contribution to the policy document, An Appraisal of Mangrove Management in Micro-tidal Estuaries and Lagoons in Sri Lanka by IUCN – International Union for Conservation of
Nature, Sri Lanka Office is much valued as it provided the policy-makers with directions on lagoon management. Yet, there were some who were not very happy – questioning why mangroves cannot be planted if there is money!
During my tenure at IUCN, I was fortunate to be associated closely with him on post-tsunami work. He was a veritable store-house of knowledge. I looked forward to our many forays into coastal areas, both in Sri Lanka and elsewhere – simply for the many hours of erudite discussions in the evenings. I learnt a great deal from Sam on coastal ecosystem management, and many of us are eternally grateful for his simple ways of sharing knowledge. Unlike some other scientists, Sam’s arguments (and counterarguments), be it on ecosystem management to community issues to buying a motor car, were always evidence-based.
Above all, Sam was a simple and humble person, always smiling and ready to help others, particularly young professionals who came his way. He was the devoted husband of Priyani, a loving appachchi to Indika and Priyanka and to Sanjiv and Rohan – they will find Sam’s loss irreparable but can take solace in that he was a good man who helped others and lived well, and who will be remembered forever for his contributions to the country.
He will be sorely missed – may he attain the supreme bliss of Nirvana.
Ranjith Mahindapala