"When I carried a banner to the Everest last year, it helped in raising awareness on climate change," Apa said on Monday speaking to journalists at WWF-Nepal. [break]
He added, "This time I will climb to thank the world for supporting our cause and also to put across to all that our fight is still on."
This time Apa will carry a banner to the Everest peak which reads: You heard our voice, now raise yours - we can stop climate change in the Himalayas.
In the Eco Everest Expedition, Apa will be accompanied by the two-time Everesteer Dawa Steven Sherpa. They will be joined by a Finnish national, Carina Raiha, who is the first Finnish woman attempting Everest.
The event is part of the WWF´s Climate for Life Campaign which extensively raised the issue of the impacts of climate change on the Himalayas last year in the run up to Copenhagen (COP-15 Summit) meet, starting with Apa taking the first banner on climate change to the Everest. His effort sent a strong message to the international community that the Himalayas were melting due to global warming and rising glacier deposits pose a grave danger of lakes burst in the mountains.
Apa and Dawa engaged in months-long tour to Europe interacting with government officials, activists and media there on the issue of melting Himalayas. In December they even met with Austrian President and presented him with a rock that Apa picked from Everest summit during his last climb.
A similar rock was gifted to US President Barrack Obama and Prime Minister of the UK, Gordon Brown, by Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal to send a strong message to the developed world.
The WWF-Nepal led campaign also collected petitions against climate injustice from 200,000 Nepali youth which were handed over to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
"Although Copenhagen result was unsatisfactory, we will keep our campaign alive. So we are climbing the Everest again" Dawa said.
Apa will also be carrying the remains of late Edmund Hillary, who along with Tenzing Sherpa conquered the Everest for the first time. Apa will also take along with him a flag of Nepal Tourism Year 2011.
Meanwhile, the team will also engage in a cleanliness drive and collect at least 7,000 kg of waste from the Everest.
During the press meet, Dawa informed that one of the major aims of the expedition will be to remove as much garbage as possible from camps 2 and 3.
"We owe everything to Sagarmatha. Thus we must give something to it in return," Dawa said talking about the cleanliness drive.
Last year too the Everest expedition led by Apa picked 7,000 kg of waste from Everest.
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