Muhammad Ali Sadpara to start 'K-2 Clean Up Campaign'

Son of the late mountaineer Muhammad Ali Sadpara, Sajid Ali Sadpara, has announced that he was launching the "K-2 Clean Up Campaign" — a voluntary cleanliness campaign from June-August 2023. The campaign is aimed to ensure a sustainable way to cope with climate change.

Local mountaineers from Gilgit-Baltistan will accompany Sajid during the campaign.

The mountaineer broke this news via Twitter on Thursday and wrote that he was "excited" to announce the campaign.

"Tourism is a lifeline for the people of GB [Gilgit-Baltistan], and we cannot shut off the mountains for expeditions, but we can mitigate risks and work on sustainable ways to fight climate change," he said in a video posted on the micro-blogging website.

Sadpara further said that he wanted to play his part in the clean-up of what he calls the "glory" of Pakistan, and added a touch of emotion when referencing the mountains as the final resting place of his father.

"Hereby, I want to come forward and voluntarily clean up the symbol of the glory of Pakistani nation and the final resting place of my beloved father," the mountaineer wrote.

He then described the various initiatives he would be organising and launching in order to create awareness about the climate crisis Pakistan is facing.

"I have formed a team of local mountaineers from Gilgit Baltistan who will be part of this campaign. I would be available for running awareness campaigns, training programmes and public representatives for policy-making for sustainable tourism," he said.

"I hope our efforts will not only help in keeping our mountains clean but will also create awareness internationally about climate change crisis which our nation is facing," said Sajid in his tweet.

The young mountaineer stated that he hopes the efforts "will not only help in keeping our mountains clean but will also create awareness internationally about climate change crisis which our nation is facing".

He concluded his tweet by expressing gratitude to all those who had facilitated him in his endavours and hoped that the government would play its role in ensuring that his climate preservation efforts would be supported.

It is worth mentioning here that Ali Sadpara went missing along with Iceland's John Snorri Sigurjónsson and Chile's Juan Pablo Mohr Prieto in February 2021 and were officially declared dead two weeks later.

As they attempted to reach the top of Savage Mountain, the three climbers were last spotted on February 5, 2021, close to the Bottleneck on K2.

Sajid Sadpara, who was with the three, had to give up trying to reach the summit after his oxygen regulator broke down, so he went back to camp 3.