B-roll for Media: Interview with Zoo Director Brandie Smith on the Giant Panda Program

Nov. 8, 2023 | https://nationalzoo.si.edu/news/giant....

NZCBI entered into its Giant Panda Cooperative Research and Breeding Agreement with the China Wildlife Conservation Association in December 2000 when Mei Xiang and Tian Tian arrived at the Zoo. While their departure Nov. 8, 2023, is a historic moment in NZCBI’s animal care and conservation success, NZCBI remains committed to continuing its efforts to secure and safeguard a healthy future for giant pandas and their habitat.

For more than 51 years, NZCBI has led one of the world’s foremost panda conservation programs. In collaboration with Chinese colleagues, the Smithsonian team has made significant contributions to the global knowledge of giant panda biology, behavior, reproduction, health and habitat. Joint programs to train the next generation of skilled research and animal care professionals ensure that giant pandas continue to thrive in human care and in the wild for generations to come. The unified effort to create and share knowledge is saving this species from extinction. Giant pandas are no longer on the endangered species list and are now classified as “vulnerable” in the wild by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. There are an estimated 1,800 in the wild.