If there’s a panda invasion in town, then it has got to be the cutest invasion ever and we are all going to die from cuteness overload.
But now, it seems like the invasion has already begun as 1,600 pandas (no more and no less) are on a journey around the world to promote the message of panda conservation and sustainable development. With the theme of “Initiating the Culture of Creative Conservation“, the “1,600 Pandas World Tour” is finally coming to Malaysia!
The 1,600 Pandas World Tour started in 2008 as a collaboration between WWF and Paulo Grangeon, an enthusiastic French sculptor who created the 1,600 papier mache pandas. With over 30 years of experience in his craft, Grangeon created the pandas in various poses, emotions and sizes using recycled paper, as a symbolic representation of the amount of pandas left in the wild.
The tour has appeared in more than 100 exhibitions across various countries such as France, the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Taiwan and Hong Kong. After leaving a massive social media frenzy and strong local participation across the globe, the 1,600 pandas will finally arrive on Malaysian soil for their third stop in the Asian region.
But when do you get to see these pandas, you ask?
From December 21, 2014 to January 25, 2015, locals can find the 1,600 pandas located at more than 15 iconic landmarks in Malaysia. The tour aims to bring awareness to the locals on the importance of panda conservation and sustainable development, symbolically encouraging Malaysians to be more aware of our natural environment and the need to conserve it.
In celebration of the Malaysia leg tour, Grangeon will also be creating a special version white mascot panda paper mache representing the uniqueness of Malaysian culture to be used for workshops.
The “1,600 Pandas Malaysia Tour” is brought to us by Faster Advertising together with consulting curator AllRightsReserved. Funds raised from the “1,600 Pandas Malaysia Tour” will be channeled to support WWF-Malaysia’s conservation efforts.
UPDATE (Dec 20th):
It’s confirmed. The 1,600 pandas have finally arrived in Malaysia!
The pandas will be leaving their adorable “paw prints” with French sculptor Paulo Grangeon at Dataran Merdeka on December 21st.
The pandas will be making their way to Penang as well on December 24th.
For more information, visit their official Facebook page.
