The Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists in exile in India, has called for less reliance on fossil fuels and the use of renewable energy sources, at a rally to mark International Earth Day.
Climate change activists presented the Dalai Lama, who lives in exile in Dharamshala, a piece of ice cut from a glacier in Ladakh, the Himalayan region in the far north of India.
The block of ice placed on a wooden tray symbolizes the melting of the Himalayan glaciers, which testify to climate change.
“During my life, I have seen a decrease in snowfall, first in Tibet and then in Dharamshala,” said the 86-year-old Dalai Lama.
The spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists called for “urgent action to reduce our dependence on fossil fuel sources and embrace renewable energy sources such as those using wind and solar energy.”
“The danger of climate change is not limited to national borders, it affects all of us,” he stressed.
The ice block was moved over a 250-kilometre route by pedestrians or volunteers on bicycles or electric vehicles to raise awareness about the effects of carbon dioxide emissions on glaciers.
Activists have used low-carbon techniques to prevent their ice block from melting.
