Who is Sonam Wangchuk? The Real Life ‘Phunsukh Wangdu’, Climate Activists, Engineer Leading ‘Delhi Chalo Padyatra’
Sonam Wangchuk: An engineer, innovator, climate activist, and educational reformist, Sonam Wangchuk hails from the serene Ladakh. As the founding director of the Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SEMCOL) he has been revolutionizing climate change activism with his innovative inventions and stern determination. He became a popular name in 2009 after the release of Aamir Khan’s ‘3 Idiots’ featuring Khan's character to be inspired by Wangchuk Know all about him in his biography.
Where is Sonam Wangchuk from?
Born on 1 September 1966 in Uleytokpo, near Alchi, Leh, Ladakh, Sonam Wangchuk was homeschooled by his mother till age 9 due to a lack of school in their vicinity of Leh, when his father Sonam Wangyal, a congress politician was posted in Srinagar.
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Sonam Wangchuk’s Education, and its struggles
Getting to Srinagar meant formal education being accessible to him. However, he was not proficient in the language spoken in those schools making him incompatible with the conventional standard along with his “different looks”. The troubles of bias in school ended with his escape to Delhi where he pleaded to the school principal of Vishesh Kendriya Vidyalaya in 1977.
After his secondary education, he pursued a B. Tech in Mechanical Engineering from the National Institute of Technology Srinagar in 1987 which he self-funded due to his difference with his father with her academic pursuits. In 2011, he went to the Earthen Architecture at Craterre School of Architecture in Grenoble, France for two years of higher education.
Career
He laid the foundation of SECMOL right after a year of his graduation in 1988 along with his brother and five peers. SECMOL boasts of a unique campus running solely on solar energy with no combustion of fossil fuels for cooking, lighting, or heating.
He is also among the founding heads of Ladakh’s only print magazine ‘Ladags Melong’. He was the editor of the said magazine from June 1993 to August 2005.
Sonam Wangchuk’s innovations
After his popular SECMOL campus, Wangchuk innovated several climate sustainability inventions.
In 2013 he invented the Ice Stupa, an artificial glacier to store water in ice forms during the freezing climate of Ladakh’s winter that can subsequently melt during Spring to fulfill the farmer’s need of water in the season.
In 2021, he helped the soldiers of the Indian army by innovating solar-powered tents to keep them warm in harsh weather of high altitudes.
Activism for climate change & Ladakh
Wangchuk’s innovation speaks volumes about his dedication to conserving the climate and environment of Ladakh. He has been collaborating with the government of Sikkim and Swiss authorities to expand his innovation.
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He protested to demand environmental protections for Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution in 2023.
Back in 2020, he asked people to boycott Chinese products to condemn and protest against China's actions along the India-China border.
2013 marked the launch of the New Ladakh Movement (NLM) to advocate for sustainable education, environmental preservation, and economic growth for Ladakh.
What is the ‘Delhi Chalo Padyatra’?
Led by Sonam Wangchuk, the ‘Delhi Chalo Padyatra’ is a month-long journey on foot from Ladakh to Delhi to press their four demands from the central government.
The members of the foot march asked for the statehood of Ladakh to put an end to bureaucratic dominance in the Union Territory; Sixth Schedule Status under the Indian Constitution providing Ladakh autonomous governance in order to preserve tribal identity, and safeguard land and resources from exploitation; separate Lok Sabha seat for Leh and Kargil for better political representation and the establishment of a dedicated Public Service Commission for Ladakh.
