Runners, think you can cover more ground in 10 days than a wild mountain lion?
Come 24 September 2021, you’ll be able to find out.
That’s when The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), adidasRuntastic and partners will launch the third edition of the Run Wild campaign.
By downloading the free Adidas Running app, participants can chart the distance they have run and try to outpace Gaia, a GPS-tracked mountain lion currently roaming the Cascade Mountains in the United States’ Pacific Northwest.
The 10-day challenge, which ends on 3 October, aims to raise awareness of the need to protect mountain ecosystems and their diverse wildlife, while motivating runners to hit the pavement.
“Wild species, like the mountain lion Gaia, need healthy and unpolluted habitats to thrive,” says Matthias Jurek, a UNEP Programme Officer dealing with mountain ecosystems. “Run Wild 3.0 is a call-to-action to tackle the global waste and pollution problem in mountains and protect these unique ecosystems.”
Mountain ecosystems occupy about a quarter of the Earth’s land, host roughly half of the world’s biodiversity hotspots and supply fresh water to about half of humanity. But climate change, deforestation and pollution are pushing many of these sensitive ecosystems to the breaking point.
A surge in mountain tourism, driven by COVID-19-related restrictions, is also creating a litter crisis on some of the world’s most famous peaks. Mount Everest, for example, is dotted with so many oxygen bottles, torn tents and plastic wrappers that activists have launched a plan to turn the trash into art.
Wild species, like the mountain lion Gaia, need healthy and unpolluted habitats to thrive.
A recent survey by GRID-Arendal, an environmental non-profit group, found that plastic is the most common type of waste encountered at altitude, and that two-thirds of mountaineers spotted litter every time they set foot on a mountain. The survey, supported by UNEP and the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm conventions, was based on responses from the mountaineering community across 74 countries. It found that waste is a pervasive issue affecting mountain regions across all continents.
Plastic waste is especially problematic. Over time, it can break down into microplastics, which are washed down into rivers and agricultural land, threatening the health of people and animals while damaging soils.
The Run Wild campaign urges outdoor enthusiasts to “leave nothing but footprints”, stick to marked trails and lower their carbon footprint on mountains whenever possible. Run Wild also seeks to promote greater sustainability in the sports and outdoor sector.
These messages echo those of the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021-2030, which seeks to prevent, halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems, including fragile mountain regions.
Along with UNEP and adidasRuntastic, a digital health and fitness company, several other partners are supporting the Run Wild campaign, including conservation organizations S.P.E.C.I.E.S. and Internet of Elephants.
The first edition of the Run Wild challenge in 2019 attracted over 500,000 participants, who competed against Uuliin, a snow leopard in Mongolia. The second iteration mobilized 1 million runners, who symbolized the 1 million species experts say are threatened with extinction.
Run Wild is supported in part by UNEP´s Vanishing Treasures programme. Its aim is to help protect endangered mountain species and their habitats, and support communities who live alongside them.
For more information, please contact Matthias Jurek: matthias.jurek@un.org
