Batticaloa, Sri Lanka

Toronto employees contribute to tsunami relief efforts

Staff of the city of Toronto (Canada) are providing relief to regions of Sri Lanka and Indonesia devastated by the 2004 Asian tsunami.

City staff have been providing technical assistance and evaluation missions in Sri Lanka and Indonesia. These missions have been laying the groundwork for longer-term restoration and reconstruction projects. As part of this commitment, the city is now formalizing partnership agreements with local officials in Banda Aceh (Indonesia) and Batticaloa (Sri Lanka).

In Banda Aceh, Toronto city staff are working to introduce a waste diversion program. As part of their efforts, they are working closely with staff in the sanitation and parks department, school officials and leaders in a village chosen for the pilot project.

In Batticaloa, Toronto city staff are helping rebuild the capacity of Sri Lanka’s stormwater operations and improve stormwater management. Workshops were conducted on ecosystems, stormwater management and the design of open channels. Toronto also provided a high-pressure water pump, a pressure washer, new tools and safety equipment to improve the maintenance of drainage systems.

ICLEI’s Resilient Communities & Cities Initiative is aimed at mainstreaming disaster resilience in the planning and decision-making processes of local governments. For more information please contact: resilient.communities@iclei.org.

Toronto is one of 19 local governments in Canada that are currently Members of ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability. For more information on ICLEI and its activities in Canada, please visit www.iclei.org/canada.

Source: ‘Employees making a difference half a world away’, Inside Toronto: Newsletter for the Toronto Public Service, Winter 2007.