These adorable paper mache pandas caused much excitement at Dataran Merdeka on Sunday. It was an event for selfies, wefies and ...just taking photographs.
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| 1600 Panda World Tour |
Well, that's not the reason why they were flown in. They're here to pass on a message to you and me about
conserving the environment.
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| Merry Christmas, y'all |
In 2008, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) worked with renowned French
sculptor Paulo Grangeon to launch the 1600 panda campaign. 1,600 pandas
were made out of recycled paper. Why 1,600? It was estimated that there
were only 1,600 pandas left in the wild at the time.
This campaign was organised to
raise awareness of the endangered species, and to highlight the importance of
preserving the environment. Proceeds from the 1600 Pandas MY event will be used to
support local conservation initiatives.
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| Wait..this is all that's left of us? |
There was, at first, childlike joy and wonder at seeing so many cute
little panda statues being displayed. But once it sinks in that this is
all that's left of them, there is sadness and a realisation that if we
do not do something about it, then they, the pandas, and many other
animals will go extinct.
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| Please take care of the environment because it is our home! |
The 1600 Pandas event was published in a number of news and media portals today. The hype was amazing. Many stated that there were 1600 pandas on display at the launch and one local paper said
thousands had made their way into our country. All I saw was something in the range of a couple of hundreds, maybe less. Mmm..where were they hiding..
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| At the launch of 1600 Pandas World Tour in Malaysia |
The good news? They'll be touring Malaysia for a month. I'll be making my way to see the pandas again and this time, I'll keep my eyes peeled for 1,600!
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| 1600 Pandas at Dataran Merdeka |
The details of the tour can be found on this Facebook page, in case you're keen to pay the pandas a visit :
1600 Pandas MY (https://www.facebook.com/1600PandasMY)
