ECO-friendly Bamboo for Reconstruction

December 2011

On the 29^th November 2011, in Beijing, China, a professional panel convened the second expert workshop meeting on building codes for engineered bamboo as part of the Switch Asia Project Eco-friendly pro-poor Bamboo Production for Reconstruction. Following this meeting, partners have agreed on divisions of work, with a final draft building code due to be submitted to the Sichuan Provincial Government after June 2012. If approved, this Provincial building code will allow engineered bamboo, a material with excellent earthquake resistant properties, to be used legally in permanent construction for the first time anywhere in the world.

Engineered bamboo products, similar to plywood, oriented strandboard or glue-laminated wood products, have enormous potential to partially replace the use of more energy intensive materials across many rapidly developing Asian economies, where bamboo resources are plentiful. However, while bamboo, which produces equal or up to two times as much biomass per hectare as many conventional timber plantations, is cultivated widely across Asia, its potential in modern construction remains unfulfilled. Therefore, development of appropriate building codes, pioneered by the EU funded Switch Asia Programme, is providing vital policy support for promoting an environmentally sustainable switch in production and consumption to locally available, highly renewable, employment generating engineered bamboo building materials.    

November 2011

Over 40 investors, purchasers, entrepreneurs and bankers visited 7 bamboo company-visits and 8 theme workshops. The investors tour from October 29 to November 2 provided space for dialogue with entrepeuers and local government officials and functional departments. Three match-making events and a series of activities provided a platform of external communication for Sichuan bamboo industry and drew more attention to industry. With success: study tour participants reached a range of agreements of intent with Sichuan bamboo companies.

As a result of the good collaboration of the partners, the enthusiasm of the participants and the contribution of the official guests and speakers, this Investor Study Tour was an overall success. The major organizers, EUPIC and Bencham, emphasize the following success factors: the variety of bamboo-products seen at the company-visits, the interesting seminars given by inspiring speakers, the genuine interest of the local media for the tour and the contribution of the local officials in local organizational matters.

September 2011

The Sichuan bamboo industry is an interesting market for investors, manufactures and retailers, as well as researchers. To promote the market, the SWITCH-Asia project Eco-Friendly Bamboo Production for Reconstruction looks for sustainable venture capitalists, financial institutions, design companies, architect’s offices, industry leaders in the construction and furniture sector, or other relevant business organisations who are interested in bamboo.

Join the bamboo train ...

The project invites interested parties to a “Sichuan Investor Study Tour”. From 28 October to 3 November 2011, the fully funded tour offers exciting visits to local bamboo plants and manufacturers which use bamboo as a resource, and an extensive investment plan covering a wide range of attractive possibilities of the bamboo industry of Sichuan. The study tour also provides workshops with in- depth information on the local market, and guidance for making the first steps into Sichuan. The study tour creates great networking opportunities with local SMEs, universities and local government, and investment bureaux. Please review the programme.

Bamboo for a sustainable future 

Bamboo is a highly sustainable plant. It grows fast (up to 1 metre a day), protects the soil from erosion and keeps the watershed balanced. It is a remarkable resource for sustainable development, and is readily available in many of the world’s poorest countries across Asia, Africa and Latin America. Bamboo supports the livelihoods of more than 1.5 billion people, generating more than $5 billion in annual trade. Now, with the issue of climate change to deal with, bamboo has become even more important. Even as a carbon credit investment, bamboo is a wise choice. For more information about the project, and the investors’ tour please have a look at www.switchbamboo.org or www.bencham.org.

15 May, 2011, Sichuan, China.

Almost three years to the day since China's Sichuan Province was hit by one of history's most devastating earthquakes, the President of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, has experienced first-hand the important and innovative role that bamboo is playing in helping to rebuild shattered communities.

On Sunday, 15 May, President Van Rompuy visited a bamboo production forest in Hongguang Village, Dujiangyan, and a bamboo training and demonstration centre at the Dujiangyan Campus of Sichuan Agricultural University. Dujiangyan is one of eight sites for the project, 'Eco-Friendly, Pro-Poor Bamboo Production', which is strengthening the local bamboo industry in order to build socially and environmentally sustainable economic growth in the region.

 "Bamboo is locally available, easy to process and highly versatile, so it can provide affected communities in Sichuan with many long-term livelihood opportunities," said Dr Lou Yiping, Programme Director for the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR), who is leading the project. "It is hugely encouraging for us that President Van Rompuy has seen our work first-hand, as it is just this kind of investment in local action and innovation that can help communities all over the world to prepare for, and recover from, natural disasters," he added.

On 12 May, 2008, the massive earthquake hit Sichuan, leaving 80,000 people dead, 5.5 million homeless and 1.15 million deprived of a means of agricultural production. Since then, INBAR has been working with partners, including the Sichuan Provincial Forestry Department (SFD), the Benelux Chamber of Commerce (BenCham) and the EU Project Incubation Centre (EUPIC), to harness the social, environmental and economic benefits of bamboo.

 "Sichuan has around 17% of China's bamboo resources, but a much lower share of China's bamboo market. So bamboo has great potential for driving green growth in the region," said Guo Hengxiao, Deputy Director General of SFD. "After the earthquake, Sichuan has worked hard to strengthen the local bamboo industry, by improving bamboo harvesting, processing and marketing, building pro-poor supply chains, attracting investment and promoting improved policies. This project helps shattered communities build a new way of life for the future."

The project was selected as one of three finalists for the World Innovation Competition, a centrepiece of the World Reconstruction Conference, which took place in Geneva, Switzerland, from 10-13 May. The conference was organised by the World Bank, the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction (GFDRR) and the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR). It brought together more than 3000 leaders, policy makers and academics to collect, assess and share examples of local action and innovation in the face of increasing frequency and intensity of natural disasters worldwide.

 "This is an excellent example of realizing sustainable production and consumption in communities that can directly benefit from it," said Johan Cauwenbergh, Minister Councellor and Head of Operations at the EU Delegation in China. "Not only is bamboo a more renewable and sustainable resource than timber or concrete, it has the added benefit that, due to the speed with which it grows, it can provide a steady source of income for local farmers, factory workers, artisans, builders and entrepreneurs. In their post-disaster recovery this counts double."

February 2011

The SWITCH-Asia project Eco-friendly Bamboo Production for Reconstruction has lauched its website.  Under www.switchbamboo.org the project informs on its objectives, implementation areas and recent activities.

August 2010

For the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR), participation in the 2010 Shanghai World Expo has been a big step out of its comfort zone. But it has also enabled the inter-governmental organisation to reach a vast, new audience – namely urban consumers, planners and innovators – that it’s less likely to reach through a traditional network of rural development and environmental conservation stakeholders.

INBAR’s SWITCH-Asia project “Sustainable Revival of Livelihoods in Post-Disaster Sichuan” is working to strengthen the local bamboo sector in order to provide eco-friendly, pro-poor economic growth. It comes in the wake of the devastating earthquake which hit Sichuan Province on 12 May  2008, claiming over 80,000 lives and leaving 5.5 million people homeless.

The project will develop the bamboo industry by building the capacity of local producers improving the fairness and efficiency of bamboo supply chains, and increasing consumer awareness of the environmental, social and economic benefits of bamboo products. So the Shanghai World Expo is especially relevant for these objectives.

March 2010

The project’s aim is to promote the development of the bamboo industry while improving the efficient use of water, resources and energy in construction. At the kick-off meeting on 16 March Dr Coosje Hoogendoorn, Director General of the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR), stressed the advantages of bamboo as building material and the potential for the project: "Bamboo has a key role to play in the development of sustainable local industries in post-disaster Sichuan. The project will not only generate local employment for more than 12,000 people, but will also promote an industry that is highly resource, energy and water efficient".

Johan Cauwenbergh, Head of Operations, European Union Delegation to China and Mongolia stressed the project’s impact on poverty alleviation: “This project will contribute substantially to the human resources development in this fascinating and promising technological field. It is evident that through the project’s efforts the livelihood of even the most vulnerable people will be positively affected in more than one way.”

This project will provide technical training for SMEs in Sichuan and help them to better comply with existing national environmental standards. At the same time the project is also to provide them with management training to improve their supply chain management system.