A 23-year-old journalist from Kumasi, Ghana broke the record for longest hug of a tree.
The “hug of trees” of Abdul Hakim I, which was held outside the Kumasi Cultural Centre, lasted 24 hours and 21 minutes.
The previous record of 16 hours was set by Ugandan environmental activist Faith Patricia Ariokot earlier this year.
Abdullah was challenged to raise the importance of environmental protection in Ghana.
He vowed to plant one more tree for every minute his record lasted, bringing the total to 1,461. Abdul refused to let it break when he was trying to record it – he had to stand with his arms around a stick the entire time. Now that the record has reached 24 hours – where the attempt is considered a “marathon” record – the title has changed to Longest Tree Hugging Marathon. This means that future runners will rest (two hours a day) to combat the negative effects of sleep deprivation.
After witnessing the effects of deforestation in his family’s hometown in Garo, Abdul now hopes to create a tree-planting program across the country. “We know how trees, an important resource that everyone depends on, are getting scarce in Ghana,” he said. “Although we have learned from previous years about saving trees, everyone’s participation is not important.
“This attempt to embrace trees for a long time, for me, is an important step to save people by saving trees.”
Abdullah is not the first Canadian to set a pole vault world record this year. He is following in the footsteps of forester Abubakar Tahiru, who holds the record for most trees pinched in one hour with 1,123 trees.
A single tree, in France, also won the Guinness World Records title this year – at 21 meters (68.9 feet), it is the tallest blue oak in the world.
