The Alliance has a Reputation for Awe-Inspiring Floats and Received Top Honors in 2024 with the Sweepstakes AwardSan Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance
SAN DIEGO (Oct. 3, 2024) – For the fourth consecutive year, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance will partner with the Pasadena Tournament of Roses® and participate in the 136th Rose Parade® presented by Honda on New Year’s Day. The 2025 Pasadena Tournament of Roses theme, Best Day Ever, will celebrate life’s best moments. Every visit to the San Diego Zoo is filled with once-in-a-lifetime experiences, culminating in the ‘best day ever’ for millions of visitors each year. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has a reputation for awe-inspiring floats and received top honors in 2024 with the Sweepstakes Award, given for most beautiful entry.
San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance’s parade float will transport viewers across Asia’s magnificent ecosystems—from the misty mountains of southwest China to the dense bamboo understories of the Himalayas to the tropical forests of Malaysia. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance works alongside conservation partners in eight regional Conservation Hubs around the world. Its work in the Asia Conservation Hub centers around key species including pandas and tigers.
The float will feature intricate designs of Yun Chuan (yoon chu-an) and Xin Bao (sing bao), the giant panda pair who made their public debut at the San Diego Zoo on August 8, 2024—designated “California Panda Day” by Governor Gavin Newsom. Five-year-old male Yun Chuan and four-year-old female Xin Bao are the first pandas to enter the United States in 21 years.
“Giant pandas have an extraordinary ability to unite us,” said Paul A. Baribault, president and chief executive officer, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. “The symbolic presence of Yun Chuan and Xin Bao at the Rose Parade, a storied New Year’s tradition, celebrates the power of nature and conservation as a unifying force.”
The San Diego Zoo’s beloved red pandas Lucas and Adira will also be featured on this year’s float, which will replicate their animated antics as they swing through the treetops. Viewers will also enjoy the regal reverence of Connor the Malayan tiger.
Each purposefully designed aspect representing these keystone species will come to life with mesmerizing plants and a dazzling array of flowers. The world-famous San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park are leading zoological institutions and proudly accredited botanical gardens. This gives San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance a special edge as it leverages its own horticulture teams to grow plants that can be used on its floats including, most notably, the bamboo that will be featured this year.
San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance’s 2024 float, themed “It Began With a Roar,” celebrated the San Diego Zoo’s 107-year history and received top honors. Its float in 2023, themed “Celebrating 50 Years of Conservation” in honor of the San Diego Zoo Safari Park’s 50th anniversary, received the Animation Award for most outstanding use of animation.
