Iread Marathon Reaches 6.5 Million Pages Read And 65,000 Trees Pledged Across Arab Libraries

The fifth edition of the iRead Marathon records more than 6.5 million pages read in three days, turning a short programme into a large shared reading experience. Organisers link every 100 pages to planting one tree, so participants’ efforts now correspond to a promise of more than 65,000 new trees.

The event takes place at the Library of the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra), while 52 partner libraries in 13 Arab countries join at the same time. For the first time, digital libraries participate alongside physical branches, giving people broader access and allowing different reading habits and technologies to appear side by side.

Organisers stress that the total pages read is more than a statistic, seeing it as clear evidence of rising engagement with books and knowledge. Participants treat reading as a regular social practice, open to everyone, away from any sense of elitism or narrow specialisation, and shaped as a simple habit in daily life.

The mix of print and digital formats gives the iRead Marathon a modern character while keeping the central idea of people gathering around books. Pages are read in several languages and across varied formats, yet they all reflect one shared belief that reading still offers strong human connections and supports knowledge-based relationships between distant communities.

The inclusion of digital libraries is viewed as a major step in this edition of the iRead Marathon, as it broadens reach and supports participation by readers who rely on screens instead of shelves. Organisers say this shows that libraries can adjust to technology and still maintain their cultural and educational responsibilities.

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The reading target linked to tree planting gives the iRead Marathon a humanitarian and environmental dimension that goes beyond culture. The simple calculation of one tree for every 100 pages makes knowledge-building visible in the real world, turning hours spent reading into support for greener spaces and placing sustainability at the heart of a cultural initiative.

By the end of the three days, the iRead Marathon demonstrates that such programmes can outlast their schedules in public awareness. The experience becomes a cultural reference that prompts questions about how reading shapes understanding, and how similar initiatives might leave longer effects by making collective reading a starting point for ongoing cultural journeys.

With inputs from SPA