Pandas, parks, and squids, oh my! In today's environment edition, you'll see there's been a steady drumbeat of wins for wildlife in 2025, as well as animal lovers and those who appreciate a nice walk in the park. And if you're searching for more reasons to smile today, look no further than these stories about paddleboarding pups and adorable narwhals playing with their food. What a wonderful world.
Environment
Lights, Cameras, Pandas! Bao Li and Qing Bao Made Public Debut at DC's National Zoo
Roshan Patel/Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute
In January, two unbearably cute ambassadors — Bao Li and Qing Bao — made their official public debut at the Smithsonian's National Zoo in Washington, D.C. And luckily, you didn't have to be in the capital city to get in on the pandamonium. In case you missed it, the Giana Panda Cam gave animal lovers a front row seat to the action — and at the zoo itself, visitors reveled in a two-week-long celebration of the debut dubbed the "District of Panda Party." Even the wider city got caught up in the occasion, with restaurants and bars in D.C. offering panda-themed treats and drinks. The bear pair arrived at the zoo in October of 2024 after traveling 8,000 miles from China. Since then, they've spent time acclimating to their newly renovated home, which is filled with shallow pools, climbing structures, and plenty of bamboo. "Bao Li and Qing Bao have already won the hearts of our staff and volunteers, andwe are excited to welcome panda fans back to the zoo — the only place in the nation where you can see giant pandas for free," director Brandie Smith said in a statement.
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"A City in a Park": Chattanooga, Tennessee, Is North America's First National Park City
Jeremy Poland/iStock
North America is home to hundreds of national parks — and also, one National Park City. In April, Chattanooga, Tennessee, became the first city on the continent to be named as such by the U.K. nonprofit National Park City Foundation. The third in the world, it followed London and Adelaide, Australia, which nabbed the designations in 2019 and 2021, respectively. In May, a fourth locale joined the party: the Dutch city of Breda. Chattanooga's recognition was hard-earned. The journey toward it began two years ago, and after rallying residents' support, the city council passed a resolution in 2024 establishing an official campaign to go after the status. With a population of around 190,000, the city undertook "a community-driven effort to celebrate, elevate, and conserve" the culture, people, and places that make it unique, per the interactive portfolio it submitted for consideration. On April 3, the Foundation announced its decision, citing Chattanooga's "remarkable story" of transformation from one of the country's most polluted cities in the 1970s to a biodiversity hot spot and unparalleled outdoor destination. Indeed, OutsideMagazine previously named it the best town in the U.S., twice.
Environment
A (Baby) Colossal Squid Was Caught on Camera for the First Time
ROV SuBastian/Schmidt Ocean Institute
One hundred years after the colossal squid was formally discovered and named as a species, scientists captured the first-ever footage of the animal swimming in its natural habitat. Since that initial finding in 1925, when a fisherman came upon remains inside the belly of a sperm whale, there have only been eight confirmed colossal squid sightings, and all have been postmortem, according to the Museum of New Zealand. That makes the April recording, captured by a team aboard the Schmidt Ocean Institute's research vessel, pretty exceptional — and to make it even better, the squid caught on camera was a baby. "It's exciting to see the first in situ footage of a juvenile colossal and humbling to think that they have no idea that humans exist," Kat Bolstad, one of the independent scientific experts the institute consulted to verify the footage, said in a statement. Because of its age, the squid was only about a foot long at the time the video was taken, but adult colossal squids live up to their name, growing as long as 23 feet and weighing over 1,000 pounds. The young animal also appears transparent in the footage, something that goes away with age — but little else is known about the species' life cycle. "These unforgettable moments continue to remind us that the ocean is brimming with mysteries yet to be solved," said Schmidt Ocean Institute Executive Director Jyotika Virmani.
Environment
One of New York's Most Popular Hiking Destinations Is Getting an Eco Transformation
Darcstudio
The Breakneck Ridge Trail is one of the most popular day hikes in not just New York state but the entire country — the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference estimated in 2018 that the destination receives around 100,000 visitors each year. That's partially thanks to its proximity to the Big Apple: It takes under 90 minutes to ride the train north from Manhattan's Grand Central Terminal to the Breakneck Ridge station. But all that traffic, as well as compounding environmental factors like invasive species and poor stormwater management, have taken a toll on the trail and its surroundings in the Hudson Highlands region. "One of the challenges is that, in many ways, the landscape — particularly the Breakneck landscape — is being 'loved to death,'" Gena Wirth told Nice News. Wirth, design principal and partner at SCAPE Landscape Architecture, is leading the design aspect of the Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail, which will eventually stretch 7.5 miles from the village of Cold Spring to the city of Beacon. The goal of the project, set for completion in 2030, is to create a single trail that will improve and protect the ecosystem while also solving for overcrowding and unsafe pedestrian conditions. Check out more of the renderings to see how the area will be transformed.
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