Colombo Urban Lab and SEVANATHA Urban Resource Centre continue to periodically facilitate discussions with Colombo’s community leaders on challenges facing low-income communities living in wattes and highrises.

CUL Director Iromi Perera recently joined government representatives and development practitioners from across South and South-East Asia for a study visit in Melbourne, Australia, to explore how other cities are responding to rising temperatures in real, practical ways.

Current systems are not designed to support communities through continuous, overlapping crises. Read the findings from our qualitative research, surveys & ongoing engagement across Colombo in our latest policy brief: www.csf-asia.org/nothing-left...

Shocks don’t come one at a time for Colombo’s working-class households. Floods, income loss, illness & rising energy costs intersect, while gaps in relief push coping into forced survival. Read our latest policy brief: www.csf-asia.org/nothing-left...

CUL Director Iromi Perera delivered a keynote at the 2026 @uta-do.bsky.social workshp in Addis Ababa. Iromi brought CUL's interdisciplinary work on Colombo's working class and informal sector into conversation with critical urban thinkers across the Global South.

Domestic workers enable women’s employment and sustain urban care systems. Yet they lack minimum wage protections, EPF/ETF, paid leave and pensions. Read our article to learn why recognising care work as dignified labour is crucial to advocate for domestic workers' rights ⬇️

Interested in raising awareness about social protection? Check out our practical guide on how you can engage with communities to understand, engage with, and shape social protection policy in Sri Lanka. See the full guide here: www.csf-asia.org/a-guide-for-...

Pettah’s Floating Market shows how urban regeneration can go wrong when projects ignore local needs and context. High costs, low relevance, and poor planning turn ‘regeneration’ into a tourist trap. Read more here: www.csf-asia.org/white-elepha...

Missed our panel on social protection and urban infrastructures of care? Read our latest article. Link to article: www.csf-asia.org/panel-discus... Full report: www.csf-asia.org/social-prote... Summary in Sinhala: www.csf-asia.org/wp-content/u... Summary in Tamil: www.csf-asia.org/wp-content/u...

Top-down urban development risks creating costly but underused spaces. Arcade Independence Square shows why inclusive planning and tenant engagement are essential. Learn more here: www.csf-asia.org/white-elepha...

Post-war Colombo invested heavily in iconic urban projects. Using two major case studies, our latest report unpacks how planning, finance & participation shaped their failure. Read it here : www.csf-asia.org/white-elepha...

Working-class mothers in Colombo face severe time poverty. Rest is rare, exhaustion is common. Time poverty isn’t inevitable. Care infrastructure and social protection can change this. Read more here: www.csf-asia.org/social-prote... (continued below)

Cost, safety concerns, and social norms make daycares a rare choice for Colombo's working mothers, even when facilities exist. Investing in care infrastructure must address trust and affordability. Read more here: www.csf-asia.org/social-prote... (Continued below)

Some scenes from our report discussion last week on social protection and urban infrastructures of care. Full report: www.csf-asia.org/social-prote... Summary (Tamil): www.csf-asia.org/wp-content/u... Summary (Sinhala): www.csf-asia.org/wp-content/u... Supported by UNICEF Sri Lanka.

Returning to work after childbirth is a major challenge for working mothers in Colombo. Our research shows why maternity protections, care infrastructure, and financial support are essential. Full report: www.csf-asia.org/social-prote... This work has been supported by UNICEF Sri Lanka

Working mothers in Colombo juggle care and work daily. Our research highlights recommendations that can support women across households and workplaces. Full report: www.csf-asia.org/social-prote... Summaries: Sinhala: www.csf-asia.org/wp-content/u... Tamil: www.csf-asia.org/wp-content/u...

Key reflections from our recent report discussion on social protection and urban infrastructures of care. Full report: www.csf-asia.org/social-prote... Summary in Sinhala: www.csf-asia.org/wp-content/u... Summary in Tamil: www.csf-asia.org/wp-content/u... This work was supported by UNICEF Sri Lanka

The findings of our report, Social Protection and Urban Infrastructures of Care in Colombo, are now available in Sinhala and Tamil. The summaries highlight key findings on care, work, and social protection in Sri Lanka. See links below

NEW REPORT: Social Protection and Urban Infrastructures of Care in Colombo Based on research with working-class mothers in Colombo, the report shows why social protection must go beyond cash transfers and treat care as essential infrastructure Read here: www.csf-asia.org/social-prote...

Join us for the launch of our new report where we explore how working mothers balance work & care, and why strengthening social protection is vital for care, and caregivers. Limited seats – register here: forms.gle/xTARjVdwicpa...

Popular narratives around social protection are deeply flawed and vilify already vulnerable communities. This article by CUL's Iromi Perera unpacks the myths about social protection in Sri Lanka, to show why dignity, universality, and rights-based systems matter for just recovery. See linked below

In our recovery from Cyclone Ditwah, ad-hoc targetted cash transfers will not suffice as many urban poor families still fall through the cracks. We need universal, dignified social protection for real recovery. Read more here: www.csf-asia.org/how-can-colo...

Ditwah exposed how unprepared our systems are. Without real data on vulnerabilities, shelters, income loss, or displacement, relief becomes unequal. Transformative recovery needs proactive planning with communities. Read more here: www.csf-asia.org/how-can-colo...

The floods following Cyclone Ditwah exposed deep gaps in Sri Lanka’s disaster planning, social protection, and urban policy. We break down the three shifts Colombo needs to build back better. Read the article here www.csf-asia.org/how-can-colo...

"What happens when export-focused infrastructure meets everyday food realities in Colombo? Colombo Urban Lab Research Associate Meghal Perera’s article in @roadsides.bsky.social reveals how vendors reshape the cold chain to survive. Read it here: roadsides.webflow.io/articles/8248 "

"Devana Senanayake’s article for The New Inquiry draws on CUL's research, including URP review ""Built on Sand"", and features insights from director Iromi Perera on how “slum-free” policies deepen poverty and erase decades of housing gains. Read here: thenewinquiry.com/housing-cris...

Housing Crisis in the “Garden City of the East”

people in cities across the Global North are unable to access affordable housing, their comrades in the Global South are dispossessed of houses that they and their families have lived in for genera…

thenewinquiry.com

Colombo Urban Lab’s Iromi Perera will join a panel at Sri Lanka Design Festival 2025 titled "Branding Cities for People, Not Just Tourists" 🗓️ Sunday, 23 November 2025, 15.45- 16.45 📍 Level 8, The Shoppes, Cinnamon Life To learn more and register, visit www.srilankadesignfestival.lk

Leisure isn’t a luxury - it’s a right. In Colombo’s low-income communities, parks are vital for care, safety, and connection. Stories from 4 parks in Wanathamulla show how communities turn space into belonging. Link to the long read here: storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/3971...

Have you read the latest edition of Colombo Urban Lab's New Publications Newsletter? Inside, you’ll find a round-up of our recent publications and articles. Read it here: mailchi.mp/bdf7f65eef55...

CSF Director Iromi Perera will speak at the National Symposium on Housing at Temple Trees, organised by the Ministry of Urban Development, Construction and Housing alongside World Habitat Day 2025, focusing on inclusive & sustainable housing for Sri Lanka