ZOOS
Toronto Zoo’s Panda interpretive Centre is one of the largest panda educational sites in the world and offers many interactive exhibits
But as Hale states, it’s not just about the money. “We’ve always placed envi- ronmental protection awareness at the heart of our mission and giant pandas are global ambassadors for species sur- vival and protection,” he says. “A key objective of the 21st century is to show people the connection between wildlife survival and protection and sustainable human development.”
Beijing benefits The practice of obtaining pandas from China - the only country in the world to have them - is not new. Known as panda diplomacy, its growth in popularity has both aided and mirrored Beijing’s march towards superpower status. Originating in the 1950s as a brain- wave of Chairman Mao’s for opening up
diplomatic channels, the gifting of pan- das to foreign nations proved so popular that China gave 23 pandas to nine differ- ent countries from 1958 to 1982. But since the mid-1980s, China has
stopped giving away pandas for free, instead leasing them for around $1m (€727,000, £610,000) per year over what is typically a decade-long contract. But despite the price hike, the western public’s love of pandas remains undimin- ished, helped perhaps by their indelible position in the culture. Ever since the WWF chose the panda
as its logo in 1961, the bear has come to represent one of the most treasured and mysterious creatures of nature, while modern movies like box office hit Kung Fu Panda have attracted a whole new generation of fans.
FLYING PANDAS - BY FEDEX
The high-profile nature of modern panda leasing has turned the practice into big business - best exemplified by the fact that transporter Fedex now offers a panda express service to fly bears around the world. Having flown polar bears, white tigers, elephants, a rhinoceros, lions, gorillas and a 13ft (4m) tiger shark, Fedex set up its panda express in 2000 and has so far carried 12 pandas across the globe. The nine-hour flight to Edinburgh in
2011 required 21 months of co-ordina- tion between three teams of specialists in three countries. With custom-made
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Plexiglas enclosures, a dedicated team of four experts on board plus copious amounts of bamboo and mineral water, the pandas received VIP care during the 5,000 mile flight from Chengdu. While FedEx inevitably benefits from
the exposure of these major media events, its managing director of UK & Ireland ground operations Trevor Hoyle is keen to point out: “FedEx Express does not charge for transporting the pandas. We feel honoured to be called upon to ensure safe passage, thus indirectly helping with the efforts to save the endangered species.”
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Weighing up costs But despite optimistic figures com- ing from Edinburgh and Toronto, Dave Towne, president of the Giant Panda Conservation Foundation for North America, insists leasing a panda is more a labour of love than a calculated busi- ness decision. “I spend most of my time discouraging various institutions from trying to go after pandas, unless they have a really strong commitment and a large cheque book,” he says, pointing out that zoos face additional costs for extra staff, feeding and entertaining Chinese visitors, as well as having to fund further research and projects. “It’s being used effectively by China. As
I’ve told a lot of elected officials in US cities - you’ve got to be brave as it’s a long commitment that will require $15- 30m (€10.9-21.8m £9.1-18.2m).” China’s use of panda diplomacy
has drawn scrutiny in recent years. In a research paper published in Environmental Practice journal in September 2013, a team from Oxford suggest that since 2008, panda loans have come about at the same time China has been signing trade deals for valuable resources and technology. The researchers claimed that panda
loans made to Canada, France and Australia coincided with trade deals for uranium, while reporting that the Edinburgh panda exchange was closely
followed by an estimated £2.6bn ($4bn, €3.1bn) worth of contracts between China and Scotland for the supply of salmon, renewable energy technology and Land Rover vehicles.
AM 1 2014 ©Cybertrek 2014
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