Kenyan woman hugs tree for 72 hours in protest against loss of beloved trees

A 22-year-old woman is the subject of celebration after she hugged a tree continuously for 72 hours amid fluctuating temperatures and rainfall on the foot of Mount Kenya. Truphena Muthoni’s endurance embrace beat her own 48-hour endurance earlier this year.

On Friday, the Guinness World Records recognized her 48-hour feat, a day after she surpassed it in the attempt that lasted 72 hours. “The longest marathon hugging a tree is 48 hours and was achieved by Truphena Muthoni (Kenya) in Nairobi, Kenya, from 31 January to 2 February 2025,” read the announcement by the Guinness World Records.

Muthoni celebrated this recognition. “It’s finally home. My 48 hours for the longest marathon hugging a tree have been recorded. Thank you God. Thank you Kenyans for your support. Now waiting for the 72 hours of non-stop tree hugging to be recorded,” Muthoni announced on Facebook.

In her latest feat, Muthoni remained steadfast, with her arms wrapped around the mature Roystonea regia (royal palm) tree, that stood close to the local Nyeri county government offices, until she could hug no more. The public, government officials, police officers and medical personnel surrounded and cheered her throughout the exercise.

For Muthoni, the 72-hour “silent protest” was meant to specifically hold authorities and a complacent public to account for irresponsible tree cutting, forest land use change and inadequate protection of water catchment areas. She also did this to encourage mental wellness, and remind all that the ecosystem is incomplete without healthy indigenous forests and ever-replenished water catchment areas.

“The reason for hugging trees is that it is therapeutic, and we have a lot of mental health crises across the world that are directly involved with environmental degradation,” she said in a video just before she began the challenge.

At first, Muthoni’s efforts looked like a stunt. Several people even made fun of her endurance on social media, including by posting themselves as hugging trees, albeit just for seconds. Yet this was a continuation of a campaign to draw attention to urban tree cover and the glaring slow but sure disappearance of indigenous forests, including in urban areas. Her first such campaign was in early 2025 in Kenya’s capital Nairobi, some 150 kilometers (93 miles) from Nyeri, where she set a world record, having embraced a single tree for 48 hours.

It soon drew the attention of the media, changing the narrative and confirming that the critical environmental issues that she sought to address affected everyone publicly and privately. The end of the challenge marked the beginning of another conversation that has increased focus on conservation and the place of forests in the lives of every Kenyan, especially since they can be linked to water availability.

The choice of Nairobi and Nyeri counties was symbolic. Nairobi harbors the world’s second-largest urban forest – Karura Forest – at more than 1,000 hectares or 2,470 acres. It is also synonymous with Nobel peace laureate Wangari Maathai, who shed blood in fighting for its conservation. The forest features caves, waterfalls and thousands of flora and fauna and is managed through a public-private partnership, by Kenya Forest Service and Friends of Karura.

Nyeri, on the other hand, is at the heart of Kenya, on the foot of Mount Kenya, a water tower that feeds Kenya’s longest river, Tana Tana, and Ewaso Ng’iro, as well as several outlets that are crucial for agriculture and hydroelectric power. It is home to Mount Kenya National Park. The now-deceased Maathai also hailed from Nyeri.

When Muthoni was done this time, it was all celebration at the local governor’s office, where she had launched the event, and nationally. Muthoni represents an emerging younger generation of environmentalists coming up with more engaging ways to shift conservation from an abstract to a real-time issue.

Organizers say the evidence of her endurance will be submitted for verification, including by Guinness World Records. Medical personnel are monitoring her to ensure she is fine after her feat.

Banner image: 22-year-old environmentalist Truphena Muthoni, when she started her 72-hour tree hugging challenge in Kenya’s Nyeri County, on the foot of Mount Kenya. The local county governor Dr Mutahi Kahiga (second right) witnessed the start of the challenge that ended on December 11, 2025. Photo: Mutahi Kahiga X

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Karen Coates Editor

This story first appeared on Mongabay

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