Dilrukshi Handunnetti

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Dilrukshi Handunnetti is a Colombo based journalist and lawyer. Trained as an investigative journalist, her reporting covers a range of topics. Dilrukshi has won local and international awards for excellence in journalism and collaborates across South Asia.

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249 stories

Landmark conviction exposes Sri Lanka’s deep-rooted illegal elephant trade

Malaka Rodrigo 29 Oct 2025

After a hiatus, an endemic plant bursts into life in Sri Lanka’s central hills

Malaka Rodrigo 23 Oct 2025
A 2.6 meter-long (8.5-ft) oarfish (Regalecus russelii) caught off the western coast of Sri Lanka is the first record of the world’s longest fish in its waters.

First oarfish sighting in Sri Lanka highlights citizen science in marine protection

Malaka Rodrigo 13 Oct 2025
Alisha’s dorsal photograph during her initial tagging in May 2012 in Gansbaai, South Africa.

Long-lost white shark tag traces remarkable journey from South Africa to SE Asia

Miriam Bahagijo 26 Sep 2025

As Sri Lanka struggles with ghost nets, volunteer youth lead seabed cleanup

Malaka Rodrigo 25 Sep 2025
Free-roaming hog deer (Axis porcinus) found on Honduwa Island in southern Sri Lanka

An elusive deer species clings to survival in Sri Lanka’s south

Malaka Rodrigo 11 Sep 2025

Sri Lanka monkey survey sparks skepticism & oddball ideas for deterring crop raiders

Malaka Rodrigo 5 Sep 2025

Data debunks spike in Sri Lanka’s elephant killings, points at media hype

Malaka Rodrigo 29 Aug 2025
Flowers and leaves of the Vanda thwaitesii.

After 160 years, an old drawing leads scientists to a long-lost Sri Lanka orchid

Malaka Rodrigo 28 Aug 2025

Social media post sparks rediscovery of endemic Sri Lanka rainforest plant

Malaka Rodrigo 26 Aug 2025

Respite, for now, for bird migration hotspot at heart of Sri Lanka’s wind power dispute

Malaka Rodrigo 20 Aug 2025
An Indigenous village in the Mount Mantalingahan area

Philippines’ new forest policy wins business backing but alarms green groups

Keith Anthony Fabro 19 Aug 2025

As fast-spreading mussel sweeps across Asia, Sri Lanka faces new invasive threat

Malaka Rodrigo 18 Aug 2025

Conservationists warn of targeted poaching behind Sri Lanka’s leopard killings

Malaka Rodrigo 13 Aug 2025

With nocturnal surveys and awareness building, Sri Lanka steps up to protect its owls

Malaka Rodrigo 11 Aug 2025

Sri Lanka plans restoring revoked protection for an important mangrove patch in the island’s North

Malaka Rodrigo 8 Aug 2025

Sri Lanka Supreme Court orders $1 bn payment in X Press Pearl marine disaster

Malaka Rodrigo 29 Jul 2025

Sri Lanka tusker death sparks euthanasia debate & calls for conservation solutions

Malaka Rodrigo 19 Jul 2025

Sri Lanka’s plant messiah spreads optimism for biodiversity & conservation

Rohan Pethiyagoda 17 Jul 2025

Out-of-range albatross makes a highlight in the revival of seabird watching in Sri Lanka

Malaka Rodrigo 9 Jul 2025

Ancient eco-friendly pilgrimage brings modern threats to Sri Lanka wildnerness

Malaka Rodrigo 1 Jul 2025

Predatory snakehead fish poses invasive threat after sighting in Sri Lanka reservoir

Malaka Rodrigo 28 Jun 2025

As iconic wild leopard ages in Sri Lanka, debate about human intervention ensues

Malaka Rodrigo 26 Jun 2025

An overlooked biocultural landscape in Sri Lanka receives overdue protection

Malaka Rodrigo 24 Jun 2025
Banner image of the Liberia-flagged vessel MSC Elsa 3 that sank on May 25 off southern India. Image courtesy of the Indian Coast Guard.

Twin ship disasters in India threaten widespread pollution on Sri Lankan coasts

Malaka Rodrigo 19 Jun 2025

Mounting risks due to climate change threaten Sri Lanka’s endemic species

Malaka Rodrigo 16 Jun 2025

After 15 years, Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court blocks road upgrade in national park

Malaka Rodrigo 31 May 2025

Sri Lanka’s golden jackals reveal importance of urban wetlands for wildlife

Malaka Rodrigo 26 May 2025

A migrating flycatcher returning to the same Sri Lankan garden sparks interest in birders

Malaka Rodrigo 11 May 2025

Kumana, a historic national park in eastern Sri Lanka, emerges as leopard stronghold

Malaka Rodrigo 5 May 2025

Blue whale decline in Sri Lanka tied to climate and human activity

Simon Payne 30 Apr 2025

Indian trawlers leave Sri Lankan small-scale fishers a ravaged, bereft sea

Malaka Rodrigo 23 Apr 2025

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The last photo taken between Rhett Butler and Jane Goodall--who shared a friendship for nearly 15 years--at the Forbes Sustainability Leadership Summit. Photo by Sofia Negron.
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