Each nation and region has its own festivals, some of which originate from traditional customs, some from religion, some from the commemoration of specific events or figures, and some from the days designated by international organizations to promote specific movements. It is on the 27th of October that WWF China celebrates International Panda Day.

The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) organized International Panda Day activities during the Shanghai International Conservation Week in 2017.At the same time, WWF China initiated International Panda Day on October 27th, and advocated that all of society, both at home and abroad, pay attention to the conservation of other species and nature with the same concern we give giant pandas. WWF China also encourages the public to realize that as long as we care for nature and are willing to do something for it, the current drop in biodiversity will be slowed down and may even be reversed.

What should we do on this newly founded “International Panda Day”? Shall we go to a restaurant to have an all-bamboo meal to eat like a panda? Or shall we just lie on a rocking-chair under sunshine to enjoy a panda’s life? Or shall we just eat and rest like a real panda?

No problem! Since this is a new festival, the writer has some tips.

Visiting a zoo

If there is a zoo in your city, and fortunately, there is a panda in that zoo, you could visit it. This way you get a chance to learn about pandas.

 
Sub-adult pandas

But if there is no panda in your city zoo, don’t be so sad. WWF China also advocates that we should pay attention to other rare and endangered species and the conservation of nature..You can go to the zoo to visit other animals to learn about them and to make some new friends. Visiting a zoo to learn about different species directly is a meaningful way to celebrate this day.

 
Oriental White Storks in Zhengzhou Zoo(source: SinaWeibo @花落成蚀)

Observing wild lives

Whether you live in the countryside, seaside or in the city, please put your work aside for a moment, on the excuse of “the international panda day”, let’s observe the wild animals around our house, in the garden, park and street, even along the railway. Let’s try to find out about the biodiversity around us!

The wild animals around us (photo from <DKChris Packham's nature handbook>)

Be Green for One Day

As a normal citizen, it is not easy for us to devote ourselves to the observation and the research of wild pandas. But we can do some simple things to help conserve pandas--- to protect the environment is to protect pandas. Be green for one day.

Be green for one day (source: WWF poster)

Watch a documentary film about pandas

If you don’t have enough time to do something for pandas far away, you can take 1-2 hours to watch a documentary film about pandas. It doesn’t matter if it is about the wild pandas or the captive pandas. Through documentary films, we can learn something about this famous, mysterious species.

 
Some documentary films
(Screenshot from Douban)

Are the above mentioned tips useful? No matter how to spend that day, I believe we will keep our eyes on the environment and conservation of nature.