Sri Lanka, Jan. 15 -- The Lucky-Theddy-Koch Community Centre, a modest two-storey structure, stands as the most prominent landmark greeting those who visit or pass through the village of Kandupita Higgoda. What's amazing is that this community centre has served the community for six decades. For many, Higgoda is an unfamiliar name; for others, it is associated with the determination of three young men who sought to empower a rural community to become self-reliant.

A Swiss national came to Sri Lanka on a village-based study started a project to boost the living conditions of a farming community The sense of harmony and community, of self-help fostered by the cluster system is still evident in the village today The Higgoda Primary School...