Scaling Circularity on Mount Everest

AUTHOR: Yoon Lee, VP, Monitors, Dell Technologies

How our team is supporting the Sagarmatha Next Center to raise awareness of the plastic waste issue on Mount Everest

Hosting nearly 80,000 visitors each year, Mount Everest is one of the most popular trekking destinations in the world – a place where people fulfill dreams and push their limits. Unfortunately, it’s also a place where they leave approximately 250 tons of waste each year. Aligned with our commitment to accelerate the circular economy, our Dell Technologies team is supporting a non-profit NGO run by local environmental enthusiasts. The Sagarmatha Next Centre, which is located near at Syangboche Namche Bazar, enroute to Everest base camp, educates visitors about this growing environmental issue and seeks to reduce the impact of waste. Located at 3,775 meters (about 12,385 feet) above sea level, Sagarmatha Next Centre is a must-stop location for visitors along the Mount Everest trail, providing the perfect opportunity to raise awareness of the organization’s effort for every climber who passes through.

For this project, we worked with National Geographic Explorer Martin Edstrom to create a short video showing the negative impacts of waste on the region. The next step was to provide the Sagarmatha Next Centre with cutting-edge technology to showcase the video and offer additional opportunities to enhance the experience through virtual reality, interactive screens and video projectors.

INSERT VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qY2ZOFww_GA

Here’s more on how the Sagarmatha Next Centre uses our technology to help to raise awareness:

• Digital exhibition. Visitors can explore and digitally experience every inch of the facility before continuing their trek.
• Map of region and common tracks. Visitors can view the 17 different hiking routes that lead to the Mount Everest base camp and other destinations in the four main valleys of the region.
• Education on landfills. Visitors can learn about where the more than 80 landfill sites reside in the Mount Everest region and what can be done to lessen the trash issue.

Powered by an OptiPlex Micro Form Factor PC, the Dell 55 4K Interactive Touch Monitors being used boast a twenty-point InGlassTM Touch and palm rejection technology, which allows multiple visitors to interact with the screens simultaneously. The monitors come with In-Plane Switching (IPS) panel technology, delivering consistent colors and a wide viewing angle – ideal for group education, even during midday when the bright sun streams in at this high altitude.

For many visitors who trek to the Everest base camp and may not make the climb to the 8,850-meter high summit, there’s also a VR experience Edstrom created that brings the mountain peak directly to them, powered and created on Dell Precision mobile workstations.

Our team’s support extends beyond providing technology to donating to Sagarmatha Next’s  Carry Me Back initiative.

As visitors leave the center, they are encouraged to take what they have learned and be part of the solution. The Carry Me Back initiative provides visitors the opportunity to remove trash and deposit it in collection bins that are transported to and recycled in Kathmandu. Through this initiative, the organization has successfully removed more than 5,000 bags of trash, or 5000 kg (five to six tons) of waste, from Mount Everest – with much of it recycled – since the program started in April 2022.

Passionate about sustainability and education, our support of Sagarmatha Next showcases there are no limits to where sustainability, education and technology can take you.

Learn more about Dell Technologies’ commitment to sustainability here.