Introduction

This chapter introduces the Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement in Sri Lanka, which was founded by Ahangamage Tudor (A.T.) Ariyaratne in 1958 in postcolonial Sri Lanka, aiming to resolve the issues of rural poverty through engaged Buddhism and the Gandhian principles of non-violent social transformation. Following this initial introduction, the chapter then gives a comprehensive overview of Sarvodaya’s various phases from 1958 to 2015, including the phase in which this study was conducted on Sarvodaya’s post-tsunami reconstruction villages of Damniyamgama, Addapalam and Vaddavan. The chapter also includes an introduction to these three village case studies. The chapter then gives an overview of the theoretical framework of the study which comprises postcolonial theory, theories on alternative forms of development, and risk.