The Sri Lanka Business and Biodiversity Platform’s 1st ever Annual Member Networking Forum and Workshop organized in collaboration with Access Engineering PLC, Ceylon Tea Services PLC and Printcare PLC on the 10th of September 2014, concluded successfully at The Kingsbury Hotel with a large participation that included a considerable proportion of Sri Lanka’s private sector. The event saw the culmination of a number of Member declarations which will be published in the public domain soon. The promotion of public-private partnerships, collaborative efforts towards biodiversity conservation and the inclusion of the SME sector for wider action were some of the topics discussed at the interactive Forum.
The workshop session saw presenters representing different industries within the private sector, provide their experience including challenges faced and best practices in the field of biodiversity and environmental conservation. While Mr. Adam Sack – Country Manager for Sri Lanka and the Maldives, International Finance Corporation of the World Bank delivered the keynote address, the following presentations ensued in order:
– ‘Environmental, Social & Corporate Governance and Financial Services’ by Mr. Jonathan Alles – Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Hatton National Bank PLC and Member of the Advisory Committee, SL B&B Platform
– ‘Changes in Consumer Preferences and Purchasing Decisions: The Story Behind Your Cup of Tea’ by Mr. Dilhan C. Fernando – Director, Ceylon Tea Services and Chairman, SL B&B Platform
– ‘Tracking the Challenges: Project Code Green’ by Mr. Denver De Zylva – Director, Virtusa Corporation
– ‘Sustainable Consumption: Committments for the Future by the Tourism Industry’ by Mr. Hiran Cooray – Chairman, Jetwing Group
– ‘Environmental Challenges in the Supply Chain’ by Mr. Sarinda Unamboowe – Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Linea Aqua (Pvt.) Ltd.
– ‘Biodiversity Enhancement through the Construction Sector’ by Mr. Nishantha Pathirana – Senior Manager Human Resources, Access Engineering PLC
Each of the above presentations were commented on by experts in the field – Mr. Shamen Vidanage – Programme Coordinator, IUCN Sri Lanka, Dr. Rohan Fernando – Director Plantations and Business Development, Aitken Spence PLC, Mr. Suresh Gooneratne – Director, Diesel and Motor Engineering PLC, Mr. Prema Cooray – Chairman, Rainforest Ecolodge (Pvt.) Ltd., Mr. Rathika de Silva – Board Director, UN Global Compact Sri Lanka and Ms. Sunela Jayewardene of Sunela Jayewardene Environmental Design (Pvt.) Ltd., respectively.
The open forum at the end of the programme saw an interactive discussion which took place between the presenters/panelists and a very enthusiastic audience.
