SAN DIEGO (Oct. 23, 2025) – For the fifth consecutive year, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance will partner with the Pasadena Tournament of Roses® and participate in the 137th Rose Parade® presented by Honda on New Year’s Day. The 2026 Pasadena Tournament of Roses theme, The Magic in Teamwork, will celebrate working together to achieve greater outcomes. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance’s upcoming float, themed “Giant Strides Together,” is inspired by the architects of the earth—elephants. African savanna elephants move trees and carve corridors used by people and other wildlife across the savanna, exemplifying the balance between all who inhabit this dynamic landscape. This year’s float will transport viewers to the all-new Denny Sanford Elephant Valley at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has a reputation for awe-inspiring floats, receiving top honors in 2024 and 2025 with the Sweepstakes Award given for most beautiful entry. 

Elephant Valley, the largest and most transformative project in San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance’s 109-year history, will open in early 2026 at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido, California. This year’s float will feature intricate designs of a few members of the Safari Park’s iconic African savanna elephant herd: matriarch Swazi and her daughter Qinisa, as well as Umngani and her daughter Mkhaya. The latter mother-daughter duo Umngani and Mkhaya gained international recognition earlier this year when they, along with other members of the herd, were seen forming a protective “alert circle” during an earthquake. 

"This year’s float celebrates the majestic elephant, a symbol of collaboration and teamwork, which are values at the heart of our mission,” said Shawn Dixon, interim president and chief executive officer, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. "Our depiction of the Safari Park’s elephant herd at the Rose Parade will inspire excitement and anticipation for the unforgettable experience awaiting guests at Elephant Valley when it opens.”

Each purposefully designed aspect representing this keystone species and the ecosystems they serve will come to life with mesmerizing plants and a dazzling array of flowers. The world-famous San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park are leading zoological institutions and proudly accredited botanical gardens. This gives San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance a special edge as it leverages its own experts to grow plants that can be used on its floats including, most notably, the savanna grasses that will be featured this year.

Elephant Valley is an immersive journey for guests to learn about the crucial role elephants serve as ecosystem engineers, and better understand the nuances of the herd’s rich social structure. Surrounded by elephants on multiple sides, guests will encounter what it feels like to walk beside the herd. The dynamic savanna at the heart of the Safari Park aims to generate greater empathy, understanding and appreciation for elephants, encouraging guests to protect them for generations to come. This first-of-its-kind experience will offer new insight into the role San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance pursues as a leader in wildlife conservation, highlighting its global partners and celebrating the vibrant cultures and local communities in Kenya where people and elephants coexist. 

In 2025, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance’s float, themed “Friendship Across the Earth,” earned the Sweepstakes Award for most beautiful entry—marking its second consecutive year receiving top honors. The award-winning float commemorated the historic arrival of giant pandas Yun Chuan and Xin Bao to the San Diego Zoo. In 2024, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance received the Sweepstakes award for its float, themed “It Began With a Roar,” that celebrated the San Diego Zoo’s 107-year history. Its float in 2023, themed “Celebrating 50 Years of Conservation” in honor of the San Diego Zoo Safari Park’s 50th anniversary, earned the Animation Award for most outstanding use of animation. 

Learn more about Elephant Valley at elephantvalley.org.