Twelve panda lovers from around the world are getting into their new jobs learning how to look after pandas at a world famous conservation centre in China's Sichuan province, before six will finally be chosen to become official 'Panda Ambassadors' - or 'Pambassadors'.

The death of a giant panda in captivity in Japan has caused something of a diplomatic stink. Apart from eating bamboo, this is something that pandas are very good at.

Michaelle Jean did a little panda diplomacy yesterday in a bid to seal a deal that would see China send two Giant Pandas to Canada... China sends pandas only to its "friends," [Dr. Ming-Tat Cheung, chairman of the Panda Acquisition Task Force at the Toronto Zoo] said, and its "special friends" get a special price, too.