SAN DIEGO – Governor Gavin Newsom and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom celebrated the public debut of two giant pandas at the San Diego Zoo on Aug 8 as Panda Ridge officially opens to visitors.

Prior to the opening ceremony, the Governor met privately with Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng to discuss the significance of the milestone for U.S.-China relations. Governor Newsom led a weeklong visit to China last October, where he met with President Xi and other high-level officials to advance climate action, promote economic development and tourism, and strengthen cultural ties.

“Welcoming these national treasures to the San Diego Zoo is a proud moment for California that reflects our strong foundation of partnership with China on a host of issues, from climate action to economic development. Working together with our international partners to protect this iconic wildlife species, we can achieve remarkable outcomes for conservation and cultural exchange – benefiting our communities and the planet,” said Governor Gavin Newsom.

The Governor and First Partner visited the Zoo’s reimagined Panda Ridge habitat, home to five-year-old male Yun Chuan and four-year-old female Xin Bao who arrived in late June. Yun Chuan is the son of Zhen Zhen, a female panda born at the San Diego Zoo in 2007, and the grandchild of Bai Yun and Gao Gao, who lived at the San Diego Zoo in the early 2000s.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the conservation partnership between San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance and China Wildlife Conservation Association. The collaboration has greatly advanced giant panda conservation, leading to the downgrading of the giant panda’s status from Endangered to Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature in 2016. This cooperation helps further the broader collaboration between California and Chinese partners on protecting biodiversity and advancing 30×30 efforts worldwide.

The state hopes that this conservation collaboration will lead to further exchanges and cooperation between California and China, which have a strong foundation of partnership built by Governors Schwarzenegger and Brown and the late Senator Dianne Feinstein, as well as Governor Newsom while serving as Mayor of San Francisco.

The celebration included the unveiling of an original portrait by California-based artist Shepard Fairey depicting Bai Yun, Yun Chuan’s maternal grandmother who lived at the San Diego Zoo for more than 20 years.