Before the greatest tragedy to hit Sri Lanka – the Asian tsunamis of 2004, the GMSL was the only CSO (the only organization of any sort for that matter) that had a disaster management program set up exclusively for responding to just such an event. As such, within 24 hours of the tragedy, the GMSL was the only organization in Sri Lanka (or anywhere else in the world) who had an exact idea of the size and scope of the event – a fact attested to by the UN reports in the first few weeks which were the GMSL reports on the disaster!
	Not content with simply responding reactively to the emergency which is a disastrous option (as we all found out in the so-called post-disaster efforts of NGOs, businesses and the government), the GMSL swung carefully prepared plans to ensure that victimized communities were left in a better condition than they were before the problem.
	Using its holistic effective development paradigm, the movement swiftly to select four of the most marginalized communities victimized by the tsunamis who also lived in highly threatened and vulnerable environment hotspots in Kalutara, Habaraduwa, Kalametiya and Tirukkovil and proceeded to intervene through a multi-disciplinary strategy that resulted in “the most successful post-tsunami rehabilitation program in Asia” according to analysts. “Turning a house into a home” was achieved within three years by immediate gap filling emergency responses, constructing eco-friendly dwellings that were disaster resistant, ensuring water security, development fisheries activities, encouraging livelihood expansion through agricultural activities, introducing sustainable tourism and encouraging entrepreneurship in all four sites. The photographs below of Kalametiya bear testimony to the impact of strategized, people centric development modalities and underscore the potential for the government to engage in such processes to ensure lasting and equitable development.