The Red Panda Network (RPN) is a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit working to protect the endangered red panda and its Eastern Himalayan forest habitat. Founded in 2007 and headquartered in San Francisco, California, the organization supports a community-based conservation model centered in Eastern Nepal, where the largest remaining red panda populations persist.
Red pandas are the only living member of their own taxonomic family, Ailuridae, and are a flagship species for the Eastern Himalayan biodiversity hotspot. The species has lost approximately half of its wild population in the past 20 years due to habitat loss, fragmentation, and poaching. RPN’s programs include Forest Guardian livelihood support for more than 2,000 families, school-based conservation education reaching 23,000 students annually, women’s economic empowerment through hand-woven rug cooperatives, and a forthcoming international Red Panda Symposium in 2026 — the first event of its kind.
RPN is a member of the IUCN Species Survival Commission’s Small Carnivore Specialist Group and an active participant in the IUCN Red List reassessment process for the red panda. The organization hosted the first international Red Panda Symposium in 2026, convening scientists, conservationists, and community leaders from across the species’ range. RPN’s combination of community development, science, and policy engagement makes it a model for flagship-species conservation in Asia.
