After a week of typical British rain, on Sunday 2 November 2025 the clouds parted, and a glorious Autumnal sun rose splicing together the blue skies over the historical and beautiful city of Oxford, England. University of Oxford Sri Lanka Society students Leo, Ethan, Pradeep, Niorla, Taya, and others clad in distinctive neon yellow vests bearing the Solar Village SDG emblem on their backs, gathered outside the prestigious Saïd Business School of the Oxford University, to greet an avid group of fundraising walkers.

Solar Village SDG, a community interest company, based in Oxfordshire UK, had organised a sponsored walk taking sizeable groups of fundraisers on an 8 km walkabout through this gorgeous city’s most famous touch points, taking in the Radcliffe Square, the Bridge of Sighs, Bodleian Libraries, Museums and numerous other historic landmarks. Oxford University’s student marshals guided the walkers through their colleges and provided fascinating facts about this international city, its world-renowned history and alumni as well as the unique aspects of Oxford University life.

The organiser, Solar Village SDG, is dedicated to promoting sustainable development, poverty reduction, and climate action in Sri Lanka. The total funds raised in the region of £10,000 including the funds raised on the day, will go towards funding two solar villages and IT classrooms in rural sites in Anuradhapura and Batticaloa, Sri Lanka, to provide solar power solutions and sustainable development. The funding page will remain open through to the end of November: https://solarvillagesdg.enthuse.com/cf/oxford-city-walkabout-2025 . Solar Village SDG anticipates the full fundraising targets to be met over the course of the coming year.

In Anuradhapura, they will support a primary school. By installing a solar panel roof at the school, a Village Development Committee will ensure much needed work is carried out. They also hope to install a smart room to support education through IT once further funds are realised.

In Batticaloa, they hope to support a community in Navat Kulam struggling without clean running drinking water, or sanitation. Solar Village SDG aims to provide solar water pumping, desalination and drip irrigation systems to support cultivation. In time, they hope to support the community with water filtration mechanisms with support from the local authorities.

Solar Village SDG’s goals align with 14 of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), demonstrating the company’s innovative approach to integrating poverty reduction in rural populations with climate action and education. In supporting rural communities and remote schools in Sri Lanka, they will support education, cottage gardens, a clean environment, and the empowerment of the entire community notably female-led households where the need is greatest.

The fundraiser proved to be an immense success. This success is also dependent on the outstanding team of individuals who planned, attended, and supported these efforts.

Several performers illuminated the post-walkathon celebration, including Mrs. Athis Vadivale with a Bharatanatyam performance, Ms. Eresha Jayatilake singing covers of Yohani and the Beatles, Miss Ushara Dilrukshan with covers of Sade, Mr. Kris Dilrukshan performing covers of Bruce Springsteen, and the mother-daughter duo, Mrs. Chamari and Miss Sonali Samarasinghe, with a beautiful fusion of Sinhala and Bollywood dance. Alongside these performances were exhibiting Sri Lankan artists, including Lilani Dilrukshan, Nadee Ranasinghe, and Leilani Jeevaratnam. Ms. Dilrukshan also managed the performances and art sale.

The event was also fortunate to be graced by the presence of Mr. Sameera Dayasekara, Counsel who represented the Sri Lanka High Commission.

Moreover, The Coconut Tree, one of the top Sri Lankan Cuisine Restaurateurs based in Oxford (and other major UK cities) very generously donated a delicious Sri Lankan lunch for all walkathon attendees, allowing an international audience to enjoy a popular Sri Lankan meal.

While speaking and learning about the important issues facing rural Sri Lanka the participants enjoyed a tremendously enjoyable day out.

Solar Village SDG’s own members contributed extensively to this wonderful event. Cheryl and Katsuyori Yamamoto, Kamani and Ravi Hewagama, Marisa Rawlins, Emma Kokuhennedege and Priyanga Nugegodage to name but a few. Kshamara Fernando an Aberdeen University student in Scotland contributed to the preparation of a magnificent post-event souvenir alongside Solar Village SDG’s CEO Nilmini Roelens and this is available here. Further, Nilmini and Cambridge University student/American national Rashmi Raveendran worked hard collaboratively together to create a fabulous “A year in review” video to summarise the work and accomplishments from Solar Village SDG’s first year which is available here.

Of special note is the contribution of Canada based engineer and Master’s student Devni Jayasekara who set up and managed the fundraising platform Enthuse and without whose highly valuable IT skills the fundraising could not have been facilitated. University student leadership support in the UK from Evelyn and Neo was helpful in securing engagement.

One planet Abingdon and Abingdon Carbon Cutters, two Oxfordshire based climate action groups, provided extremely valuable fundraising support to this international mix of fundraisers. The top individual fundraiser spots for Oxford City Walkabout, went to Saliya and Sandya Samaranayake, Ravi and Kamani Hewagama, the pioneer of the Solar Village concept and Chair of Solar Village SDG cic, Emeritus Professor I M Dharmadasa as well as Lilani Dilrukshan, Eleanor Dangerfield and Fatima Aftab.

The truly international flavour of this worthy endeavour was sealed in when St Paul’s Milagiriya “Evergreens” Catheeja Ismail in Maryland, USA and Tung Chi Ching (“Tunchi”) based in Sydney, Australia took the excellent initiative to organise their very own sponsored “relay walk” locally in their own adoptive countries, contributing valuably to the Solar Village SDG’s Oxford City Walkabout fundraising.

Solar Village SDG CIC’s directors Professor IM Dharmadasa, Ms Nilmini Roelens and Mr Saroj Pathirana are extremely grateful for this outstanding support, and a Sri Lanka based team of experienced volunteers will now seek to implement the projects progressively in the coming months.

By Nilmini Roelens and Rashmi Raveendran