Sonam Wangchuk, who was the inspiration behind Aamir Khan’s character ‘Phunsukh Wangdu’ in the 2009 hit ‘3 Idiots’ achieved global recognition after he was awarded the prestigious Rolex Awards for Enterprise 2016.
The Rolex Awards for Enterprise are given out in Los Angeles, to those “who have reshaped the world with their innovative thinking and dynamism.”
Sonam Wangchuk has bagged this prestigious award for his “Ice Stupas” project and is one among the five winners of this year’s award.
Taking inspiration from the work of his fellow Ladakhi engineer Chewang Norphel, Wangchuk created the “ice stupas” – conical ice mounds that act like mini-glaciers, slowly releasing water for the agricultural season.
According to the Business Insider reports, the Ladakh region between the Kunlun and Great Himalayan mountain ranges faces acute water shortage during the April-May early crop-growing. Wangchuk was certain that access to water in the desert landscapes around many high altitude towns and villages of Ladakh could be improved if the huge seasonal outflow of glacial water could be frozen.
In a statement released by Rolex, Wangchuk said, “The Rolex Awards funds will support the project and promote ice stupas as a climate-change adaptation and desert-greening technique.”
Wangchuk intends to build up to 20 ice stupas, each 30 metres high and capable of supplying millions of litres of water. His long-term goal is to build an alternative university and engage the youth from Ladakh, the Himalayas and other mountain ranges in the world in the environment; and to help them find their own solutions to the problems plaguing their respective countries, The Indian Express reported.
Rebecca Irvin, Head of Philanthropy at Rolex Award release said, “The Rolex Awards were designed to support those whose own spirit of enterprise mirrored the enterprising spirit on which the company was founded.”