Storytelling for Conservation

Chitral Jayatilake sheds light on the power of inspiration in wildlife conservation

 Corporate storytelling has evolved in leaps and bounds over the past decade from photograph heavy content to videographic material. “Everything you do is transformed into a 60 minute documentary, two minute video on Facebook or 20 second clip on TikTok,” states Vice President of John Keells Holdings (JKH) and Head of Nature Trails Chitral Jayatilake.

An avid nature photographer, a passionate wildlife conservationist and a strategic business lead for ecotourism, he believes that corporate storytelling is a win-win for organisations and the environment.

“When you share conservation stories, you showcase what you do and earn recognition for it. You also inspire others – e.g. customers, competitors and society – to join the bandwagon, thereby inspiring a mindset shift that benefits wildlife,” he explains.

Jayatilake observes that Sri Lankan companies are making headway in sustainability initiatives but wildlife conservation needs more focus.

He cites notable corporates that have been pioneers in this area in Sri Lanka – namely, Jetwing Hotels, the Dilmah Conservation, MAS Holdings and Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts: “For most of these corporates, the drive for wildlife conservation may have begun with zealous individuals with a love of wildlife; but it has been transformed into a corporate passion.”

“Most companies do not have leaders who naturally love wildlife; so having nature champions at senior levels is a blessing,” he remarks, elaborating: “This is because individual passion is woven into the organisational fabric over a period of time.”

Over the last 14 years, Jayatilake and his team at Cinnamon’s Nature Trails have pioneered a number of wildlife conservation projects, beginning with the Leopard Project at Cinnamon Wild Yala. This involved the installation of 100 steel pens to protect cattle near the eastern, western and northwestern borders of Yala National Park.

Furthermore, the team collaborated with the Environmental Foundation on a leopard research project in Yala in 2014. This was an idea born in 2013 when Jonathan and Angela Scott visited Sri Lanka.

Jayatilake’s team also commenced Project Elephant at Cinnamon Lodge Habarana to study 354 elephants through two satellite trackers – the first initiative of its kind in South Asia.

Nature Trails is now embarking on its first Wet Zone project in the Sinharaja Forest Reserve where a 15 member naturalist team will scientifically reforest a 50 acre plot adjacent to the rainforest.

“Wildlife conservation must be sustainable to have longevity – it must make business sense; corporates must choose initiatives that naturally connect with their business models,” says Jayatilake.

He concludes that corporates must devise their own sustainability formula, regardless of how much or little they spend because “we all must give something back to the environments in which we operate.”