Indigenous resource management and external development interventions in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka: From conflicts to synergies?

Abstract

An argument is presented that environmental problems in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka are caused, among other reasons, by conflicts between the exogenously influenced modern strategy of land resources management, and the incompatibility of the modern approach with aspects of the physical environment. This conclusion is obtained through a comparative analysis of both strategies using an actor-oriented methodology. Concerning the potential of indigenous technologies under present-day conditions it is argued that the rationale guiding them is highly relevant and has actually been internalized into the vocabulary of many development interventionists because negative effects of the dominant development discourse are becoming obvious. A shift in power relations (including the acceptance of local knowledge within innovative “development” ventures) is required if the potential of the indigenous strategy is to be tapped. It remains an open question whether this power shift can take place from within the development enterprise alone.