Recently, the chartered flight carrying the giant panda Fu Bao landed in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. Round, soft and furry, panda is favored by people across the globe, attracting the attention of many experts and scholars.

In RUC, we have a “Dr. Panda” who is not only enthralled with pandas, but also knows pandas well. From his desk, bed, computer, to his garderobe, the image of pandas can be found virtually everywhere. The man we are talking about is Zhang Fengyuan, a 2020 doctoral student majoring in population, resource and environmental economics at the School of Environment & Natural Resources, RUC. As a big fan of pandas, Zhang is devoted to academic fields concerning the cute animal.

Giant pandas research in the wild

Last October, a research report titled “Construction of Giant Panda National Parks and Tourists’ Willingness to Pay for Wild Giant Panda Conservation” appeared before the evaluation committee of the 2023 RUC “Understanding China” academic practice program, which surprised the teachers. The report was finished by Zhang Fengyuan. During the scorching summer of 2023, Zhang closely studied pandas deep in the Giant Panda National Park Tangjiahe Area.

Zhang Fengyuan says he was lucky to have the generous help of Mr. Ma Ben, an assistant professor from RUC, during his research. Mr. Ma has a lot of experience in the field of panda research and national parks, and with his help, Zhang went to the Giant Panda National Park to conduct his own research.

In addition to the Giant Panda National Park, he also went to Wuyi Mountain National Park and Sanjiangyuan National Park where he spent an entire summer vacation to finish this thick research report.

The research found that to tourists, wild panda conservation is rather abstract, and even in the reserve rangers, people barely have opportunities to see wild pandas with their own eyes. It is difficult for them to feel the real value of wild panda conservation.

In the end, the project was rated excellence, and the story of Zhang Fengyuan and pandas began to be known by more people.

Zhang Fengyuan then went to Cornell University for a one-year exchange visit. This time, Zhang took the “panda dream” out of the country, and he shares the lovely daily life of pandas with young scholars from all over the world, presenting his story of wild pandas protection to global audience.

A long-held dream about pandas

As a small boy, Zhang found himself deeply attracted by the images of cute panda cartoons. In 2012, after the College Entrance Examination, Zhang Fengyuan decided to choose Environmental Engineering as his major as part of his efforts to contribute to the protection and improvement of the habitat of wild pandas. After graduating with a master’s degree, Mr. Zhang entered a centralized enterprise and engaged in environmental protection and pollution control. As the work continues to deepen, he gradually came to clearly recognized the decisive role of rational environmental planning and management and efforts to guide the whole population to raise awareness of environmental protection in creating a “livable” home for pandas. In 2020, he finally made up his mind to quit his job and pursue a population, resources and environmental economics doctoral degree, under the tutelage of renowned environmental economist Wang Hua.

Going forward, Zhang will continually integrate his passion for pandas into the study and protection of the cute animal. Looking forward to see how his passion could translate into more tangible benefits to our society.