The Finns’ love for clean air, fresh food, and pristine wilderness is celebrated every August during Finland’s TreeHugging World Championships, where participants from all over the world go head-to-head in Levi’s HaliPuu Forest to raise awareness of the well-being benefits of spending time in nature.
Combining warm-hearted, sustainable fun and the benefits of connecting with nature, the leafy competition is organized by HaliPuu, whose mission is to connect nature and people. They have been organizing the competition since 2020.The online TreeHugging World Championships is also hosting a photo contest with a chance to win great prizes.
This year’s competition takes place on August 24, but you don’t have to be in Finland to participate. Anyone anywhere in the world can show their tree love and has a chance to win great prizes by taking a photo of their tree hug and sharing it with HaliPuu between August 10 to 31, 2024. The online contest winner will be announced on Sunday, September 1 on HaliPuu’s social media.
Participating in the online competition is very simple:
- Find your favorite tree, hug it, and take a picture of your hug
- Post your hug on Instagram or Facebook with both hashtags #TreeHugging2024 and #HaliPuu by 11 a.m. CET/12 p.m. EST, Saturday, August 31, 2024.
- Include a description of why you love this specific tree or tree hugging in general.
The winner will be selected by the judges based on the deep feeling conveyed in the hug, and the overall creativity and fun in the picture.
The prize for the online TreeHugging World Championships 2024 will be invited to join the live competition of 2025 in HaliPuu forest, Levi, Finland. They will receive a one-week stay for two in Levi (courtesy of Visit Levi) and a private cocooning trip for two in the HaliPuu forest, both during TreeHugging2024 next year.
The winner will also receive a foraging & food experience in the Arctic nature by Arctic Frontier, a gift card to a luxurious 2-night accommodation for two persons in Design Hotel Levi, including breakfast and entrance to the SPA.
The annual competition encourages a love of nature
Finland Competition Details
The TreeHugging World Championships 2024 will be held at the HaliPuu Forest in Levi on August 24. Participation in the event is free for all. While HaliPuu invites a select number of participants to attend the physical event in Levi, everyone around the world is welcome to participate in the online event coinciding with the live championship event.
Each participant will compete in three events:
- Speedhugging: Most trees hugged in one minute. In a marked area, hugging as many trees as possible in one minute, each hug lasting a minimum five seconds
- Dedication: Most dedicated hug of a specific tree of the contestant’s choice lasting a maximum one minute
- Freestyle: Most creative hug. Style open to contestant’s interpretation, one tree only, lasting a maximum of one minute
Watch Live
Live event in HaliPuu forest in Levi, on Saturday, August 24, 2024, at 12 p.m. CET The live event will be streamed at 12 p.m. CET on the competition website https://www.halipuu.com/treehuggingworldchampionships/ and https://www.instagram.com/LeviLapland/ .
So far, ten competitors have been announced, representing their countries or areas of origin including Vietnam, Poland, Argentina, Finland, Switzerland, USA, and Australia. Some contestants have already taken part before, some are first-timers.
Prizes
The combined winner of all three categories will be awarded the prestigious title of TreeHugging World Champion 2024, and will receive a private Arctic Cocooning experience with the HaliPuu family, as well as other prizes.
Judges of the Live Competition (announced so far): Minttu Heimovirta, a biologist, wilderness guide, and journalist and Matti Välimäki, nature management specialist at Metsäkeskus Forest Center.
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About HaliPuu
HaliPuu is a tiny family-owned company with a big heart that since 2015 has worked in Lapland, first to protect the family’s own forest from felling and since then to promote the experience and benefits of trees worldwide. The company name HaliPuu is Finnish for “a hugging tree”.
Since 2015, HaliPuu has worked to protect the family’s own forest in Lapland from being torn down and has also continued to promote the experience and benefits of trees worldwide. Awarded the Finnish Social Enterprise Mark, which is given to companies that work to solve social and environmental problems, HaliPuu is working to establish an international association that works together to increase nature awareness at the grassroots level.
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