Choki Wangmo

Coinciding with the 41st birth anniversary of His Majesty The King, the Snowman Race Secretariat, today, launched the ‘41 Fun Challenge for Climate Action’ to create awareness, generate actions, and commitments for climate action.

The five-month challenge has five themes dedicated to His Royal Highness Gyalsey’s fifth birthday with each theme comprising nine actions.

Tourism Council of Bhutan’s chief of promotion division Damcho Rinzin said that climate change was impacting the world and that it had become urgent to create awareness and generate actions to help mitigate its impacts. “It’ll also help people in understanding that Snowman Race isn’t about running but communicating climate messages.”

To create awareness and generate actions, such initiatives are expected to bring behavioural changes through responsible, sustainable and climate-conscious tourism experiences, while building Bhutan’s profile among visitors as a champion of climate action.

The themes of the challenge revolve around climate action: go green, embrace energy, wane waste, nurture nature, and kids for climate action.

Participants will get about two weeks to share the challenge they took in each theme, which will be uploaded online for selection.  International participants will be given customised legal stamps.

Damcho Rinzin said that the best three in each theme will be awarded prizes depending on the theme and age groups, among others.

Some of the actions the participants can take include using a reusable mask, use of non-plastic containers, online services to pay bills, plant a vegetable, using LED bulbs, unplugging unused appliances, and waste segregation. “Through such small actions, we communicate climate actions, which are important.”

Although the Snowman Race Secretariat deferred the snowman run last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it introduced a 40km virtual run during a virtual athlete roundtable to commemorate the ninth Royal Wedding Anniversary last October.

The race is expected to be conducted in October this year.

The run starts from Gasa with participants running more than 300km in five days crossing 11 passes, six mountains over 7,000 metres, glaciers and two national parks drawing the world’s attention to climate change and its impacts on the lives of people living in fragile mountain ecosystems.