A new Policy Brief by CSF warns that Sri Lanka’s renewed push to lease large tracts of land for tourism risks repeating past failures unless land allocation is grounded in ecological limits, infrastructure readiness, and community realities. The findings are especially timely as Sri Lanka positions the tourism sector as a key pillar of post-crisis recovery. While streamlined land leasing may appear efficient, CSF cautions that speed without preparedness risks eroding community trust and undermines long-term economic value.

Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) are meant to anticipate and minimise harm to communities and nature, but CSF’s new report finds that the quality of social impact reporting in EIAs is low, making EIAs unreliable for decision-makers and investors to scrutinise and use.

Centre for a Smart Future is pleased to launch 'Looking Back, Building Forward' A Collection of Essays on Sri Lanka’s Economic Crisis and Emerging Priorities. The purpose of this publication - a collection of essays of our writing since 2022 - is twofold. Firstly, to serve as a reminder of some of the key contributing aspects of the crisis, as well as the impacts faced by vulnerable communities. With a desire to quickly ‘move on’ and celebrate recovery, these aspects have been forgotten. Secondly, to serve as reference points to inform and influence a more just, inclusive, and sustainable economic recovery, which is our idea of a ‘smart future’.

The impacts of COVID-19 lockdowns followed by a crushing economic crisis provided Sri Lanka the perfect opportunity to rethink what social protection means for the country, who it should be for, what it should entail and how it should be operationalised. Unfortunately what we saw was a heavy focus on one new cash transfer programme Aswesuma, which replaced the existing Samurdhi programme. This Policy Brief presents a detailed critique of the Aswesuma programme and some pathways to the new government and policy makers to strengthen social protection in Sri Lanka.

A new publication by Colombo Urban Lab explores the implications of relocation of vendors to modern marketplaces, with justifications for these relocations centering around formalisation, beautification, cleansing (of the streets), sanitation or the provision of modern services for vendors.