Field Excursion- 2022
Diploma in Disaster Management - 09th Intake
Department of Geography - University of Kelaniya.
The four-day field excursion for the 9th Intake of the Diploma in Disaster Management (DDM) conducted by the Department of Geography, University of Kelaniya, was successfully held from the 1st to the 4th of September 2022. The field survey was completed with the participation of 28 students who followed the course. The field visit mainly focused on inculcating the practical knowledge and application of disaster management strategies aligning them with the concepts and theories learned in the classroom. The team was headed by the coordinator of the DDM; Senior Lecturer Mr. Mangala Jayaratne, Professor A.G.Amarasinghe, Senior lecturer Dr. Nishan Sakalasooriya, the Senior Lecturer Mr. Sampath Arunashantha, Lecturer (Prob) Mr. Indunil Ranwella and Lecturer (Prob) Ms.Wathsala Gunathilake. This field visit is a pre-requisite for the candidates to complete the course successfully.
This four-day field visit was organized mainly to incorporate students in the fieldwork while developing their field surveying techniques. The excursion started at the University of Kelaniya, and the first day covered the Madu Ganga ecosystem, particularly concerning the importance of such an ecosystem in disaster management. This site visit helped the students identify the sensitive ecosystems that need to be conserved as a part of the disaster mitigation process. Also, a focus group discussion was conducted to identify the coastal disaster and its effect on the southern coastal belt villagers in Galle.
The Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) program, which focused mainly on identifying the essential PRA tools, allowed the students to explore the burning disaster-related issues faced by the villagers living in the Weerawila area. Day three and day four of the field visit were held in Bandarawela and Nuwara Eliya, representing a different landscape from the first two days. This allowed the students to interact with the villagers who experienced disastrous outcomes of the Uma Oya development project.
The last day of the field visit was done at Horton Plains and the surrounding area. The students were introduced to an environmentally sensitive area with a complex geophysical structure, the country's central highlands, which needs to be managed and monitored properly to mitigate future disasters.
The main aim of the field visit was to encourage student participation in fieldwork related to the theories and the concepts they learned in the classroom. According to the views and the comments of the students and the staff members, the visit was successful. It has opened new avenues for the students to explore disaster management strategies from a novel perspective with real-hand field experience.
