Panda Poo and Steven Spielberg (or, More on the Beijing 2008 Olympics)
Reduce, Reuse and Recycle
A Chengdu panda-breeding center used to spend $770 USD every month on daily cleanup of nearly a ton of panda poop. Not any more! And what do they do with it now, you ask?
Souvenirs. The dung is sterilized under a new plan to use it for profit. It is then made into odor-free, Olympic-themed statues … such as giant pandas.
Nothing says “I love you” like bringing back a bit of formed feces for a friend who couldn’t afford to attend the Games in person.
The Power of One (Really, Really Influential Person)
Steven Spielberg is artistic advisor to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Thanks to pressure from fans who are also human-rights activists, the director told the Beijing Olympic Committee organizers that he would quit unless China took a hard stance toward its trade partner, the Sudan, with respect to the genocide that is taking place in the Sudan’s Darfur Region. Days later, China backed a UN resolution that will send 26,000 peacekeepers to Darfur.
So if you read my previous post and figure you can’t make a difference to animals in China, think again. Heck, you might even want to ‘cc’ your letter to Steven Spielberg.
Panda Poop and Steven Spileberg bits shamelessly plagiarized from the August 13 issue of Time Magazine.