It's super important to make sure our pandas have good quality bamboo. Back in 1994, when we first started raising them, we had fewer pandas and mostly fed them special panda dumplings instead of bamboo. So, we could get enough bamboo from around Shirahama Town. But after 2000, as breeding went well and our panda family grew, and we switched to a bamboo-focused diet, we needed to find new places to harvest bamboo. That's why in 2005, we teamed up with Kishiwada City, which was already working on bamboo forest maintenance, and managed to secure new bamboo harvesting spots. We've been using about 8 tons of bamboo branches and leaves annually as panda food, which helps with bamboo forest maintenance and mountain environment conservation. However, we also faced a dilemma: we had to throw away bamboo that pandas didn't eat or parts that couldn't be used as food. To solve these issues, we started the Panda Bamboo Project! This project helps preserve satoyama by using bamboo that would otherwise overrun the area as panda food. Plus, we're upcycling bamboo stalks that pandas don't eat, leftover bamboo, and even their droppings – which we used to throw away – into valuable resources, all to tackle social issues.

Creating forests in Kishiwada City's bamboo groves to promote bamboo resource circulation and conserve biodiversity.

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• 2011年から大阪府岸和田市と「岸和田丘陵地区における竹の提供に関する協定書」を締結し、岸和田丘陵地区内の市の所有する土地の竹を、パンダの食事として使用してきました。 2020年には協定書の刷新を行い、パンダが食べ残す竹の有効活用により竹を利用した循環型社会の実現を目指して「SDGsパートナーシップ協定（通称：パンダ協定）」を締結しました。 2022年、事業者が環境保全の一環として「森づくり」に取り組むための「アドプトフォレスト制度」に参画し、岸和田市の竹林における竹の有効利用（竹資源の循環）や、生物多様性を保全する森づくりに取り組むこととなり、「アドプトフォレスト協定」を締結しました。

Kishiwada City, Shirahama Town, and AWRS Co., Ltd. (Adventure World) 'Panda Bamboo Smile Wide-Area Comprehensive Partnership Agreement'

In August 2022, Kishiwada City in Osaka Prefecture, Shirahama Town in Wakayama Prefecture, and AWRS Co., Ltd. (Adventure World) signed the 'Panda Bamboo Smile Wide-Area Comprehensive Partnership Agreement.' Our goal is to boost regional exchange across many different areas, using our unique resources and strengths to create a 'Smile' for the region through public-private collaboration. As part of our efforts to mutually use regional resources and build a regional circular and symbiotic community, we kicked off a project using Panda Bamboo.

• Panda Bamboo Tumbler

  

  This is a reusable cup, upcycled from bamboo that pandas don't eat and would otherwise be thrown away – turning it into a valuable resource! For these tumblers, we're using the 'Forest Tumbler,' which was jointly developed by Asahi Breweries, Ltd. and Panasonic Corporation. We're aiming to cut down on plastic waste by offering a drink container that you won't 'throw away'.

• Panda Bamboo
  Mobile Workation Spot

  

  We teamed up with Professor Koichi Toki's lab at Shiga Prefectural University to design and set up a nature-experience bamboo mobile workation spot in Safari World. We harvest bamboo in Kishiwada City, use the branches and leaves as food for our pandas, and then use the stalks and any leftover branches/leaves as materials for the spot.

• Bamboo Crafts x Panda Bamboo
  Collaboration Product Development

  

  We've hosted sales and workshops for 'Panda Bamboo Rings,' crafted by Kyoto bamboo artisans and students from Kyoto University of Arts and Crafts. It's been a great chance to think about bamboo culture and the social issues surrounding it.

• Connecting Smiles with Bamboo Lights

  

  We made bamboo lights using bamboo stalks that pandas don't eat, lighting up the park at night with a gentle glow. Employees, guests, and local residents all joined in the making, creating a wonderful chance for people to connect. Plus, more hotels are now displaying these bamboo lights, which has really strengthened our community ties!

• Nanki Shirahama Panda Bamboo EXPO.

  

  From December 2020 to January 2021, we hosted a community-wide art and innovation event called 'Panda Town,' aiming to create the future with 'Panda Bamboo' and share it with the world! During the art sessions, you could see bamboo and panda-themed artworks displayed at major spots around Shirahama Town. And in the symposium sessions, bamboo researchers, architects, and artists gave talks about the amazing potential, value, and future of bamboo.