Indoor renovations modernize and upgrade the pandas’ interior habitat and building infrastructure. Work is underway to install new climbing structures, water features and rockwork that encourage the bears to exercise and play. A new ventilation system provides improved air quality and temperature control, and an upgraded smoke evacuation network would keep the bears safer in the unlikely event of a dangerous situation. 

Also included are upgrades to the Giant Panda Cam, made possible by a network of trained volunteers. 40 centrally operated cameras, as well as three console machines and the monitors in the Giant Panda Cam operating room, are being replaced with state-of-the-art technology. 

Improvements to the pandas’ outdoor habitat—including multi-level climbing structures and cooling features—give the bears more ways to engage with their surroundings. Added rockwork and perimeter fencing brings a new level of safety and security for pandas and visitors alike. Updates to the exhibit signage welcome visitors to a new era of giant panda conservation. 

Funds from the giant panda program support science-based conservation efforts in the animals’ native habitat. With your help, researchers can train the next generation of wildlife professionals, lead strategies to mitigate human/animal conflict, and track threatened and elusive animal species—like the red panda and the Asiatic black bear—through high-tech camera networks.