Travel the world with pandas for a year: Chengdu recruits global guardians

By MOOK Scenic Spots Family Travel Life Network, reported and compiled by Li Xinyi

Following the huge success of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef “Best Job in the World” campaign, Chengdu, Sichuan, is now recruiting panda guardians. The selected individuals will spend the next year traveling to all countries and regions around the globe that are home to giant pandas, such as the United States, Mexico, Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Thailand, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Germany, among others

The first "Chengdu Global Recruitment of Panda Ambassadors" campaign in 2010 attracted over 60,000 participants from 52 countries and regions worldwide. Six lucky contestants won the competition and had the unique opportunity to spend one month up close with giant pandas at the Chengdu Panda Base. This year’s selected Panda Ambassadors will not only get an intimate experience with the giant pandas but will also participate in a five-month “Global Panda Guardianship Journey,” visiting all countries around the world that host giant pandas and sharing panda conservation information with local communities.

In January this year, Chengdu released six captive-bred giant pandas into the “Panda Valley” in Dujiangyan, initiating a wild release training research project that will continue for at least 50 years. Themed “PandaQuest - Be the next Chengdu Pambassador,” this year’s ambassador recruitment invites participants to explore both the “Panda Valley” in Dujiangyan and the more remote Longxi-Hongkou Giant Panda Habitat, seeking the best pathways for hundreds of “urban panda clans” to return to their natural mountain wilderness. Participants will also engage deeply with the Chengdu Panda Base, taking on specialized roles such as panda doctor, panda mother, and panda chef to get up close with nearly 100 adorable captive-bred giant pandas. The recruitment campaign is using Facebook as its platform, with applications open from now until October 1. Interested individuals can sign up at www.facebook.com/ChengduPambassador and compete in one of four regional divisions: Europe, North America, Asia-Pacific, and China. Sixteen finalists from the four divisions will gather in Chengdu at the end of October for the final selection round, where the ultimate three lucky “Chengdu Panda Ambassadors” will be chosen.

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