Shanghai, April 30, 2024 – Throughout April, Shanghai Disney Resort has been encouraging guests, cast members and community members to join in celebrating nature with a series of Earth Month activities and events. This year, Disney and National Geographic are coming together to celebrate this beautiful planet we call home and the power within each of us to create change for the better. As a key highlight of this year’s Earth Month celebration, the “ourHOME” Nature Conservation Forum, themed with “Taking Action Together to Protect, Restore and Celebrate Our Planet,” was hosted in the resort on Earth Day today. At the event, speakers and panelists from a wide range of industry sectors shared their valuable insights and joint efforts on environmental protection and wildlife conservation. In collaboration with National Geographic, the forum aims to increase public environmental awareness and drive individual’s action on nature conservation.
“Every year, Earth Month and the beauty of spring are great reminders of our responsibility to protect the planet we all share,” said Joe Schott, President and General Manager of Shanghai Disney Resort. “This is a responsibility our resort takes seriously, and we are committed to taking meaningful and measurable action year-round to support a healthier planet for future generations. Through unique storytelling, we hope today’s Nature Conservation Forum and all of our Earth Month celebrations will inspire action and collaboration in environmental stewardship and conservation efforts, creating a brighter future for us all.”
During today’s “ourHOME” Nature Conservation Forum, Xi Zhinong, National Geographic Explorer, renowned for capturing the beauty of nature in his photography, shared a gallery of his photos with thought-provoking behind-the-scenes stories. Xi has turned his passion for birds into a career as a wildlife photographer and has harnessed the power of visuals to raise public awareness of wildlife conservation. Xi has inspired many people to take up wildlife photography and influenced even more to take action for wildlife conservation.
The forum also presented a lively panel session, where panelists from related non-profit organizations including World Wildlife Fund, China Blue and The Nature Conservancy shared their insights and actions from their perspectives. Zhu Jicheng, Shanghai Dance Theatre Deputy Director, Executive Director of Dance Drama Crested Ibises, also joined the panel as the show celebrates its 10th anniversary of the premiere this year, sharing the story behind the environmental-themed dance production and its profound impact on increasing awareness on saving endangered wildlife through the themed concept of “for what was lost in the past, let’s appeal to cherish the future forever.”
The Earth Day celebrations continued as the resort hosted dancers from Shanghai Dance Theatre’s dance drama Crested Ibises who performed a graceful dance display at Wishing Star Park. The dance drama was themed to the protected bird crested ibis, using the language of movement to convey the beauty and elegancy of these birds and inspire people to re-examine the relationship between humans and nature.
“Celebrate Earth-Earth Month Fair”, an annual Earth Month tradition, returned to Disneytown from April 19 through April 22, with 22 environmental and nature themed booths including an exciting new addition — the first-ever booth hosted by National Geographic. The vibrant band at Shanghai Disneyland, JAMMitors, brought their interactive performance to the Earth Month Fair for the first time ever. Using makeshift instruments collected and constructed from around the resort, JAMMitors entertained guests with energetic music while sharing a message promoting waste sorting and recycling.
Cast members have also been celebrating Earth Month in the community through a wide variety of nature-themed events and activities, including Disney Reading Together sessions and five Disney VoluntEARS activities. A nature-themed Disney Reading Together session was hosted on April 20, attended by over 50 children and their families at Shanghai Disneyland. Dr. He Xin, a long-time collaborator with Shanghai Disney Resort for its bird-watching program, and a senior member of the Shanghai Wild Bird Society and Research Fellow at the Shanghai Natural History Museum, told the story of the Pixar Animation Studios film Up, in which Carl and Russell, a Wilderness Explorer, along with their friends Dug the golden retriever and the large exotic bird Kevin, embark on a trip to Paradise Falls.
On April 26, the resort’s Disney VoluntEARS will return to Chongming Island on a mission to clean-up the shoreline refuse at Dongtan, a tidal flat that serves as an important post station and shelter for migratory birds in the Asia Pacific region. Through the clean-up activity, VoluntEARS will see firsthand how negatively impacts wetland ecosystems and marine life, and on how each of us can take action in our daily lives to modify lifestyles and consumption habits to promote sustainability.
Last December, Shanghai Disney Resort donated RMB one million to the China Environmental Protection Foundation to support the launch of the “My Hometown Animals and Me,” a national conservation education campaign, promoting greater awareness among the youth on wildlife and natural habitat protection. Twenty children selected for their outstanding work on the campaign were invited to experience this year’s Earth Month activities at Shanghai Disney Resort.
While the annual Earth Month celebrations last only a few short weeks, Shanghai Disney Resort encourages everyone to take time to appreciate the beauty of the nature and take action throughout the year to preserve and protect our planet for future generations. All year long, Disney is partaking action to conserve natural resources, care for wildlife and their habitats, use and waste less, and share stories that inspire action, all a part of our Disney Planet Possible commitment.
