In the fourth episode of Center Stage 2021, we interviewed the fun, cool, and annoying (according to him), Assistant District Rotaract Representative Rtr. Miyuru Dharmage. Watch the video to find out why our ADRR hears grasshopper sounds at the end of some of the Best Rotaract Events!
Watch the video here:
Here are a few more questions we asked him, and his thoughtful answers to them:
What is the most unsettling or disturbing fact that you can think of?
Sri Lanka has the highest suicide rate in the world, or in that range. But at the same time, if you look at the common public, they don’t reconcile things like mental health and they don’t take it seriously. Even if you look at the insurance and health aspects, they don’t consider that as a serious risk factor. Even our employable sector, they don’t consider the suicide rate as a factor that they should consider.
What are some challenges you think that the next generation will face?
Climate Change. Most people think that automation is a treat, but it’s not a treat. Automation has been happening since the industrial revolution. So, there’s nothing much to worry about that. But fake news, misinformation, learning to live in the same objective reality, sharing reality with another person, agreeing on the same fundamental idea; those types of things are the biggest challenges. Because people tend to compartmentalize themselves a lot. And they try to live in their reality. And when reality crashes into each other, there’s a lot of friction. So, people become more isolated. So those are the biggest challenges.
What would you suggest for the current government to act upon?
Right now and when considering the immediate future, they are trying to protect the economy, and they should continue to do so. But little by little they have forgone the health aspects, buts they should come back to a middle ground where they consider the health of the people in terms of Covid 19 and the spread. Right now, I don’t see a balance. The balance has shifted completely when compared with how we handled the lockdown situation last time. But in the long term, we have to think about creating more job opportunities in sustainable areas and attractively creating them. Because right now, there’s a very specific pattern in terms of career options. So, we have to diversify and push them into more sustainable areas and that’s the area that government can focus on.
For Episode 01 click on: Center Stage – DRR. Rtn. Rtr. PP. Kavindra Kasun Sigera
For Episode 02 click on: Center Stage – Rtr. PP. Kayalvili Mathawaram
For Episode 03 click on: Center Stage – ADRR. Rtr. Himantha Alahakoon
Stay tuned to find out who’ll take the CENTER STAGE next!