A regenerative future envisions thriving ecosystems and healthy communities that enrich the natural environment while recognizing humanity’s strong social, cultural and economic reliance on nature.
In this talk, botanist and ecological restoration expert Thilanka Gunaratne will explore how indigenous and traditional knowledge systems can offer valuable lessons for natural resource management practices that balance environmental conservation while also supporting livelihoods and economic development.
Indigenous and local communities hold deep ecological wisdom that can help to build a regenerative future. Refined over generations, traditional knowledge has maintained healthy, regenerative landscapes through the sustainable use and management of natural resources. However, one of the greatest challenges lies in the documentation and preservation of this knowledge, much of which is rapidly being lost.
Building a regenerative future will require the recognition and integration of indigenous and traditional knowledge systems across communities, to build strong, inclusive governance systems and management strategies that respond and adapt to local ecological, social, and economic needs.
Thilanka Gunaratne is a restoration ecologist and Professor of Botany at the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. She holds a Ph.D. in Plant Sciences from the University of Aberdeen, where her research examined barriers to forest succession in the man-made grasslands of the Knuckles Forest Reserve. At Peradeniya, she leads the Restoration Ecology Group and has directed major projects on forest recovery in the Knuckles Conservation Forest and Hantana Mountain Range. Her coordination of a project to restore lower montane forests in the Knuckles Conservation Area earned a national CSR Sustainability Gold Award in 2018. Through long-term research on seed biology, forest regeneration, and applied restoration practices, engaging local communities in conservation, she aims to create innovative platforms that advance environmental education, research, and outreach, fostering environmental conservation for a regenerative earth.
