A 23-year-old Ghanaian journalist based in Kumasi has broken the world record for the longest time to hug a tree.
Abdul Hakim Awal’s “tree-hug-a-thon” took place outside Kumasi Cultural Centre and lasted for 24 hours and 21 minutes.
His achievement surpasses the previous record of 16 hours held by Ugandan environmental activist Faith Patricia Ariokot, which she set earlier this year.
Per report by the Guinness World Records, Abdul took on the challenge to highlight the importance of nature conservation in Ghana.
While embarking on his record attempt, Abdul pledged to also plant a new tree for every plant a new tree for every minute of his attempt. After 24 hours, Abdul planted a total of 1,461.
Abdul was not permitted any breaks during his record attempt – he had to remain standing and keep his arms wrapped around the tree throughout the entire duration.
Now that the record stands at 24 hours – the point at which record attempts are considered ‘marathons’ – the title has been modified to the longest marathon hugging a tree.
This means that future challengers will be permitted breaks (a total of two hours per day) in order to combat the harmful effects of sleep deprivation.
Abdul, who has witnessed the consequences of desertification in his family’s hometown of Garu, now hopes to establish a nationwide tree-planting initiative.
He said: “We know how trees, an essential resource which the entire human race depends on, are becoming scarce in Ghana.”
“Though we have been taught about the preservation of trees since the early years of our lives, everyone's contribution is not as significant as it should be.
“This attempt for the longest time to hug a tree, to me, spells out an important task to preserve human life by preserving trees.”
Abdul is not the first Ghanaian to set a tree-hugging world record this year. His achievement follows that of the forestry student based in the US, Abubakar Tahiru who set a record for the most trees hugged in one hour with a total of 1,123.
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