San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance To Celebrate The Rose Parade With A Float Inspired By Elephant Valley

For the fifth consecutive year, the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (SDZWA) will participate in the iconic Rose Parade® in Pasadena, California — one of the most anticipated New Year’s events in the United States. This time, the organization will unveil a float inspired by Elephant Valley, its largest and most transformative project to date, set to open in 2026 at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido.

The 137th Rose Parade®, presented by Honda, will carry the theme “The Magic of Teamwork,” celebrating collaboration as a force for achieving meaningful impact. In that spirit, the SDZWA float will be titled “Giant Steps and Moving Forward Together,” paying tribute to elephants as the true architects of their ecosystems.

African savanna elephants—known for uprooting trees and creating natural pathways that allow countless species, including humans, to coexist—will be the stars of this floral creation, symbolizing the unity between communities, nature, and conservation.

A Work of Art Inspired by Nature and Empathy

The float will feature real members of the Safari Park herd: matriarch Swazi, her daughter Qinisa, and the pair Umngani and Mkhaya—a mother and daughter who made international headlines this year after forming a “protective circle” during an earthquake, a moving instinctive act that highlighted the strong family bonds of these animals.

“The elephant represents collaboration and teamwork—core values of our mission,” said Shawn Dixon, Interim President and CEO of the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.
“Showcasing our herd at the Rose Parade will inspire excitement for the experience guests will enjoy when Elephant Valley opens.”

Every element of the float has been designed with both educational and symbolic intent—to highlight the essential role elephants play in maintaining healthy ecosystems. The floral decorations, crafted from thousands of natural flowers and plants, will include savanna grasses cultivated by the Zoo’s own horticulture specialists, who are also certified botanical gardeners.

The Rose Parade: Tradition, Community, and Hope

Celebrated every January 1 in Pasadena, California, the Rose Parade® attracts millions of spectators both in person and through televised broadcasts in over 100 countries.

Since its first edition in 1890, the event has served as a cultural platform uniting communities, universities, foundations, and brands under one shared spirit of creativity, beauty, and collaboration.

For the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, participation goes beyond the parade itself—it represents the connection between environmental causes and the global community, placing conservation, empathy, and coexistence between species at the heart of the celebration.

Elephant Valley: An Immersive Journey into Conservation

Elephant Valley promises to revolutionize the visitor experience at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, offering an immersive journey where guests can walk alongside elephants in an environment that recreates the African savanna.

The project aims to foster empathy and understanding toward these gentle giants—often called ecosystem engineers for their vital role in regenerating landscapes.

It also highlights the Alliance’s global partnerships with local communities in Kenya, where people and elephants share territory and challenges, showing that coexistence and mutual respect are the keys to long-term conservation.

A Legacy of Excellence at the Rose Parade

The SDZWA has earned top honors at the Rose Parade for two consecutive years.

In 2025, its float “Friendship Across the Earth,” celebrating the arrival of giant pandas Yun Chuan and Xin Bao at the San Diego Zoo, won the Sweepstakes Award for most beautiful entry.
In 2024, it received the same distinction with “It All Began with a Roar,” commemorating the Zoo’s 107th anniversary.
The previous year, “Celebrating 50 Years of Conservation” won the Animation Award.

With this new participation, the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance reaffirms its commitment to environmental education, conservation, and teamwork.

The Rose Parade® will not only be a stunning visual spectacle—it will also serve as a global invitation to reflect on our relationship with nature and the power we share, as a community, to move forward together toward a more empathetic and sustainable future.