"Excuse me! Tapping on the glass is not allowed because it puts stress on the animals!"

Jen retracted her hand and struggled to find an apology as the zookeeper stalked away.

Jen sighed and turned back to examine Ellie, the only red panda at the Fiory Zoo. Ellie had reddish-brown fur and a black belly. Her ears were lined with white and she had a ringed tail. Jen watched closely as Ellie skillfully climbed up the large bamboo tree and settled on one of the thicker branches. A bright red information card glinting in the sunlight caught Jen's eye. Normally, she wasn't a fan of reading large chunks of text, but the word ENDANGERED seemed like the card was screaming "Read me!" She skipped the boring parts about what red pandas were and what they did, but when she reached the section titled "Why Red Pandas are Endangered," she started reading. The text read, "Their primary threats are habitat loss and degradation, human interference, and poaching." Human interference? Jen thought. Doesn't that include keeping the red pandas captive in zoos? Her thoughts were cut short by her mother.

"Jen! It's time to go!"

She stuck the card into her pocket, making a promise to herself to learn more as she rushed to catch up with her parents who were already waiting at the entrance. That night, Jen typed "Red panda endangerment and zoos" into the search bar of her old macbook computer, knowing nothing about how a spark of curiosity would lead to a world of new information, an advocate for the liberation of red pandas, and the first ever creation of the International Union for Conservation of Red Pandas.