28 October 2024. The Sustainable Mountain Alliance (SMA) are pleased to announce a media partnership with the italian film production company “Point Nemo” within the framework of its documentary “The Ice Builders.” The documentary tells a story of human resilience and adaptation in the mountains as the local communities of the Ladakh region in India build artificial glaciers, or “Ice Stupas,” to mitigate against water shortages caused by the effects of climate change and the rapid melting of glaciers.
Ice stupas were created by Ladakhi engineer Sonam Wangchuk and his team in the Ladakh region, a region that has four major mountain ranges passing through it – the great Himalaya, Zanskar, Ladakh, and the Karakoram. Now globally recognised as a valid mitigation solution, Ice Stupas are now being tested in Nepal, Pakistan, Chile and Switzerland. They can also uniquely serve as tourist attractions and ice climbing walls for ice climbers.
Project Description:
“The Ice Builders” is a short documentary that shines the light on how traditional knowledge and modern engineering can help to alleviate the drastic effect of rising temperatures in the Himalaya. Ice Stupas are constructed by piping water using gravity (no pumps or power needed) such that the water freezes by the time it reaches the ground and slowly forms ice cones of 30-50m (Ladakhi winter nights reach -30 to -50°C with wind chill). These Ice Stupas then melt in the springtime, providing essential water for agriculture and human subsistence in this barren mountainous environment.
“The solution, I always say, lies with the people in the big cities. Please live simply so that we, in the mountains, may simply live.” Extract from the interview with Sonam Wangchuk, engineer and creator of the Ice Stupa concept, The Ice Builders.
“When I look at the Himalaya, I look at it as a source of life and a very vital asset of the world. And that’s why it cannot be looked at as a regional issue, a national issue alone, but it should be looked at as an asset of the world,” states Lobzang Wangtak, glacier conservationist from Ladakh in The Ice Builders.
The short film, “The Ice Builders”, premiered at the Trento Film Festival, in Italy, one of the oldest film festivals in the world and one of the most important festivals dedicated to the mountains and the outdoors. The short documentary has received significant acclaim and won three awards and has since been selected for numerous other film festivals, where it has garnered additional recognition and accolades. At the 72nd Trento Film Festival, where it won Green Film Award, Solidarity Award, it was noted: ‘Told in an effective and engaging way, it raises awareness on a particular bottom-up climate adaptation strategy…’. In addition to these screenings, the team behind the project has organised a photography exhibition to accompany the film in order to amplify its reach and impact.
With this project, Point Nemo is committed to raising awareness about the innovative solutions being implemented in Ladakh to combat the severe impacts of climate change on mountain local communities.
Scaling Up the Project:
The mission now is oriented towards completing a feature film of “The Ice Builders” and therefore returning to Ladakh to document the ongoing efforts and help local communities to build another Ice Stupa, while filming the missing parts of the film, for a cost of approximately US$ 80.000. To achieve this, the film production company Point Nemo seeks further funding and support.
Impact and Goals:
The making of a feature film about the Ice Stupas will enable the following goals to be reached:
Raise awareness: The documentary aims to highlight the critical challenges faced by mountain communities in Ladakh due to climate change, bringing global attention to their plight and the innovative solutions they are developing.
Sensitise the public: By showcasing the human stories and local knowledge behind the Ice Stupas, the film seeks to foster empathy and understanding, especially from people connected to the mountain environment, encouraging the public to take an active interest in climate resilience and sustainable practices,
Generate support: The project aspires to attract interest and assistance from individuals, organisations, and governments to support the communities in Ladakh to build Ice Stupas.
Inspire Actions: By presenting the practical and low tech innovative solution of the Ice Stupas, the documentary hopes to inspire other countries to adopt similar practices to combat water scarcity and climate change effects. There are already some examples of adopting the Ice Stupa techniques in Chile and Switzerland but the goal is to help expand the reach of this innovation to many more countries.
Foster Collaboration: The project aims to build alliances between local communities, scientists, and policymakers to implement sustainable solutions that can be replicated in other vulnerable mountain regions.
For more information:
Click here to download the Ice Stupa project presentation
Documentary trailer: The Ice Builders – Trailer on Vimeo
Point Nemo – Donations: pointnemofilm.it