Sustainability is an integral part of our business model and the way we do our business is directly interlinked with our sustainable initiatives. We believe that our every action facilitates the sustainable development of the nation and the world at large.
Equal rights mean that allows the plantation community to obtain government services without a disturbance. ISD apply two way approaches that the project pushes the government to possess services for the plantation community, meantime, it strengthens the community to demand services from the government. We believe if the government provides the proper services that bring the positive changes and infrastructure developments in the plantation that would increase the accessibility of the economic factors which gives proper incomes and reduce the poverty.
Our project activities aim to bring gender equality at the household and society in the plantation. Identifying and acting against the GBV is hard in the plantation as their cultural practices simplify the GBV as cultural norms. ISD focuses on both men and women to solve these issues, it creates awareness among the family members especially aiming the youth who can speak up against gender-based violence. Then, slowly it speaks on gender equality without harming their culture and beliefs. Also, ISD is promoting women to participate in the political arena actively and empowers them to involve in the process of decision-making. Equal rights mean bringing gender equality at the household and also in society.
The plantation workers hardly enjoy the workers’ rights as most of the colonial practices are continuing in the plantation. ISD use different type of approaches to ensure the workers’ rights. The workers have been enlightened on labour rights and their entitlement to demand decent working environment, report to authority when workers’ rights violated. ISD continually sought for decent work environment and proper living wage. The daily wage is a most predominant issue in the plantation, ISD conducts the scientific research to support TU and workers on wage demands. Meantime, we closely work with stakeholders such TU, political representative, and international communities to ensure the works rights and for decent working environment.
It’s very important that plantation workers community to be enlighten on climate changes and natural disasters as most of the tea plantation located in deep hillslope. The vulnerable community has high risk on natural disaster likely landslide, flood and droughts that directly result the economic loses and deaths. ISD creates awareness among the community members and form Estate Disaster Management Committees (EDMC) with collaboration of District Disaster Management Centres. This committee will be able to access the government services through District Disaster Management Centre. However, there are gaps to be filled in terms of providing relief for the disaster victims in the plantation such building houses and providing economic loses, therefore, ISD lobbies for the inclusion process.
