BambuBrasil
11th November 2003, 10:13 PM
Greetings Bamboo Friends from all over the world!
It is with great pleasure and satisfaction that I write to you all, after only a few days of setting up this discussion group, and find over 30 members from half a dozen countries.
Please read on and understand some background information on why we wish to create [BBF] Bamboo Brazil Foundation / [FBB] Fundação BambuBrasil and which purpose(s) we shall serve:
--
Proposal for Creating a Bamboo Foundation for Brazil:
Why Bamboo and Why Brazil?
---
A non-profit 501(c)3 charitable institution to disseminate the use of bamboo in Brazil, foster sustainable development throughout country, create appropriate rural technologies, improve the lives of the poor, through the process of promoting, planting, and educating about bamboo.
--
"To make a long story short"
In recent years, several NGOs were created in Brazil to address bamboo development in Brazil. However, many of them were regionally based and lacked sufficient funding from local governments. The Brazilian Bamboo Foundation aims to create a federation of already existing bamboo organizations under one roof for mutual synergy and benefit.
In March of 2000, the electronic discussion group Bambu-Brasil was created by the industrial designer Raphael Vasconcellos (www.bambubrasileiro.com) to address this problem. For over one year, he researched bamboo through the internet and translated this valuable information into Portuguese. He worked relentlessly for many years at his university in developing design ideas to promote bamboo throughout the country.
During this same time, I came across his discussion group online while researching bamboo. At that time, I became involved with bamboo by chance. A good friend of mine, an unemployed carpenter, had lost his job and I was looking for ways to help him. At his home, he had designed a "Balinese" style bamboo chair utilizing Dendrocalamus Giganteus. People often walked by and complimented him on his "Bamboo Throne" but no one gave any consideration to this Poor Man's Wood...
For over 2 decades, much research and work has been done in Brazil to promote the use of bamboo. However, there was nothing to tie these researchers together. Eventually, the electronic discussion group Bambu-Brasil brought these people (researchers, academics, university students, and curiosity seekers) together from around the country into a forum to address these issues. At that time, I am sure none of us realized the potential for embracing technology and social networks for solving real-world problems through peer production methodologies.
Bambu-Brasil now has over 350 members which compromise the bulk of the bamboo society in Brazil. It is the most active bamboo discussion group online where members constantly exchange ideas, research, and photos of bamboo developmental progress around the country. Currently, there are well over 6,000 messages which deal with any subject pertaining to bamboo possible. It is a remarkable achievement for a country that doesn't even has a bamboo policy or Bamboo Society!
Academics, Agronomists, Architects, Civil Engineers,Researchers, Scientists, Botanists, Taxonomists and many other quite curious individuals use this forum to democratize bamboo information which is mostly restricted to English and unaccessible by the general population.
Just recently, INBAMBU (Instituto de Bambu do Brasil - Brazilian Bamboo Institute) was formed out of a partnership of various organizations: The Federal University of Alagoas, SEBRAE (Small Business Association of Brazil), and BAMCRUS - www.bamcrus.com.br (A national social bamboo non-governmental organization). Quite recently, we can add to this growing list, the architect from Rio de Janeiro, Celina Llerna who formed EBIOBAMBU - Bioarchitecture School of Experimental Bamboo Use (www.bambubrasileiro.com/ebiobambu).
Whereas bamboo was once the poor man’s wood in Brazil, IBAMA (Brazilian Forestry Department) now is beginning to recognize this renewable non-wood resource as a vital component of sustainable development in Brazil. Luciano Roitman, who together with João Paglione, Raphael Vasconcellos (bambubrasileiro.com), and Marco Antônio Pereira were at an international bamboo course in China, is now a consultant for them in regards to bamboo.
For many years, Itapagé has used bamboo for paper making. They cultivate over 40,000 <sic?> hectares in Macéio, Northern Brazil. Now other micro-enterprises are being created and bamboo cultivation and plantations are expanding. Yet there are many natural bamboo stands that exist and are not being used by the population because of lack of bamboo education.
For many decades now, many informal furniture making companies have utilized "Cana d'India" (an expression used instead of "Bambu" to make the bamboo furniture seem more resilient) for furniture production. Our estimate is that anywhere from 1,000-5,000 artisans make their living from bamboo furniture across the country.
INTRODUCTION
"Let’s empower the poor to discover what’s ALREADY in their backyards!"
Brazil has the largest remaining area of tropical rainforest in the world and arable land suitable for mechanized agriculture. However, these areas are rapidly diminishing due to the non-sustainable use of wood and timber for furniture making, construction and export to the United States, Europe, and the world.
We also have one of the worst problems of social disparity, with 1% of the population controlling 99% of the country's wealth. How can we possible solve these problems? How can bamboo address such a large socio-economic-educational paradigm?
The Bamboo is ALREADY there! Whether the Portuguese brought it from India or China, or the Japanese brought môsso (Phylostachys pubescens), there are uncountable areas of bamboo forests, natural or exotic. These areas are being either inutilized or managed unsustainably. The local population needs to be sensitized to bamboo and view it as "Green Gold" as the Chinese see it and not as "The Poor Man's Timber".
Perhaps by fostering sustainable development and reaching out to the International Community, we can hope to achieve some remarkable goals in Brazil.
1) Creation of a Brazilian Bamboo Society
2) Recognition of Bamboo as a Renewable Non-Wood resource by IBAMA (Our forestry department responsible for auditing our national territory and controlling deforestation/devastation of Brazil's rainforest)
3) A decentralized democratic network which the Foundation ties together to form a federation of charter members, brought together for mutual benefit, synergy, and cooperation regardless of affiliation.
4) Creation of BambuBrasil.org as a Portal for ALL BAMBOO in BRAZIL, not limiting itself to, free email for bambu-brasil yahoo discussion group members, bamboo intranet, forums, events, calender, online workshops, database system, dynamic content management system, photo galleries, and whatever our imaginations and hearts can conjure..
5) Creation of a National Herbarium or regional centers to collect native endemic species. We would like to partner with our friends at BOTA (Bamboo for the Americas) http://www.bamboooftheamericas.org/ and share their noble goals:
"The Bamboo of the Americas project is committed to accomplish the following:
-Seek international and host country participation and assistance.
-Enhance the awareness of bamboo in the host countries while attaining environmental objectives.
-Document the habitat of native bamboo in host countries.
-Assist in the construction and management of a native bamboo center and a propagation nursery in the host countries.
-Collect and propagate native bamboo in the correct climate zone of the host countries.
-Develop economic and distribution plans for the bamboo nursery in host countries.
-Coordinate eco-tourism and educational groups in and to the host countries.
-Develop a national collection of living native species, including a herbarium.
-Begin research in the native species; including habitat, utilization and range. Priority given to endangered species.
-Implement protection, propagation and restoration of habitat to native bamboo species.
-Research and identification of the native species leading to an educational display garden at a major eco-tourism resort.
--
Thank you for your time and attention if you managed to read this long posting. This is for immediate release and will be subsequently translated into Portuguese/Spanish/German for better understanding amongst other non-english speaking members.
Best Regards,
João Paulo Freire Paglione "Aprendiz de todo, miestro de nada"
-An Admirer
It is not enough to run, one must arrive and know when one has arrived. - Nigerian proverb
Aislarse es morir, pero compartir con otra cultura es como estar renaciendo una y otra vez.- Carlos Fuente
"Die Beschäftigung mit Erde und Pflanzen kann der Seele eine ähnliche Entlastung und Ruhe geben wie die Meditation" - Hermann Hesse. [from bambus.de]
It is with great pleasure and satisfaction that I write to you all, after only a few days of setting up this discussion group, and find over 30 members from half a dozen countries.
Please read on and understand some background information on why we wish to create [BBF] Bamboo Brazil Foundation / [FBB] Fundação BambuBrasil and which purpose(s) we shall serve:
--
Proposal for Creating a Bamboo Foundation for Brazil:
Why Bamboo and Why Brazil?
---
A non-profit 501(c)3 charitable institution to disseminate the use of bamboo in Brazil, foster sustainable development throughout country, create appropriate rural technologies, improve the lives of the poor, through the process of promoting, planting, and educating about bamboo.
--
"To make a long story short"
In recent years, several NGOs were created in Brazil to address bamboo development in Brazil. However, many of them were regionally based and lacked sufficient funding from local governments. The Brazilian Bamboo Foundation aims to create a federation of already existing bamboo organizations under one roof for mutual synergy and benefit.
In March of 2000, the electronic discussion group Bambu-Brasil was created by the industrial designer Raphael Vasconcellos (www.bambubrasileiro.com) to address this problem. For over one year, he researched bamboo through the internet and translated this valuable information into Portuguese. He worked relentlessly for many years at his university in developing design ideas to promote bamboo throughout the country.
During this same time, I came across his discussion group online while researching bamboo. At that time, I became involved with bamboo by chance. A good friend of mine, an unemployed carpenter, had lost his job and I was looking for ways to help him. At his home, he had designed a "Balinese" style bamboo chair utilizing Dendrocalamus Giganteus. People often walked by and complimented him on his "Bamboo Throne" but no one gave any consideration to this Poor Man's Wood...
For over 2 decades, much research and work has been done in Brazil to promote the use of bamboo. However, there was nothing to tie these researchers together. Eventually, the electronic discussion group Bambu-Brasil brought these people (researchers, academics, university students, and curiosity seekers) together from around the country into a forum to address these issues. At that time, I am sure none of us realized the potential for embracing technology and social networks for solving real-world problems through peer production methodologies.
Bambu-Brasil now has over 350 members which compromise the bulk of the bamboo society in Brazil. It is the most active bamboo discussion group online where members constantly exchange ideas, research, and photos of bamboo developmental progress around the country. Currently, there are well over 6,000 messages which deal with any subject pertaining to bamboo possible. It is a remarkable achievement for a country that doesn't even has a bamboo policy or Bamboo Society!
Academics, Agronomists, Architects, Civil Engineers,Researchers, Scientists, Botanists, Taxonomists and many other quite curious individuals use this forum to democratize bamboo information which is mostly restricted to English and unaccessible by the general population.
Just recently, INBAMBU (Instituto de Bambu do Brasil - Brazilian Bamboo Institute) was formed out of a partnership of various organizations: The Federal University of Alagoas, SEBRAE (Small Business Association of Brazil), and BAMCRUS - www.bamcrus.com.br (A national social bamboo non-governmental organization). Quite recently, we can add to this growing list, the architect from Rio de Janeiro, Celina Llerna who formed EBIOBAMBU - Bioarchitecture School of Experimental Bamboo Use (www.bambubrasileiro.com/ebiobambu).
Whereas bamboo was once the poor man’s wood in Brazil, IBAMA (Brazilian Forestry Department) now is beginning to recognize this renewable non-wood resource as a vital component of sustainable development in Brazil. Luciano Roitman, who together with João Paglione, Raphael Vasconcellos (bambubrasileiro.com), and Marco Antônio Pereira were at an international bamboo course in China, is now a consultant for them in regards to bamboo.
For many years, Itapagé has used bamboo for paper making. They cultivate over 40,000 <sic?> hectares in Macéio, Northern Brazil. Now other micro-enterprises are being created and bamboo cultivation and plantations are expanding. Yet there are many natural bamboo stands that exist and are not being used by the population because of lack of bamboo education.
For many decades now, many informal furniture making companies have utilized "Cana d'India" (an expression used instead of "Bambu" to make the bamboo furniture seem more resilient) for furniture production. Our estimate is that anywhere from 1,000-5,000 artisans make their living from bamboo furniture across the country.
INTRODUCTION
"Let’s empower the poor to discover what’s ALREADY in their backyards!"
Brazil has the largest remaining area of tropical rainforest in the world and arable land suitable for mechanized agriculture. However, these areas are rapidly diminishing due to the non-sustainable use of wood and timber for furniture making, construction and export to the United States, Europe, and the world.
We also have one of the worst problems of social disparity, with 1% of the population controlling 99% of the country's wealth. How can we possible solve these problems? How can bamboo address such a large socio-economic-educational paradigm?
The Bamboo is ALREADY there! Whether the Portuguese brought it from India or China, or the Japanese brought môsso (Phylostachys pubescens), there are uncountable areas of bamboo forests, natural or exotic. These areas are being either inutilized or managed unsustainably. The local population needs to be sensitized to bamboo and view it as "Green Gold" as the Chinese see it and not as "The Poor Man's Timber".
Perhaps by fostering sustainable development and reaching out to the International Community, we can hope to achieve some remarkable goals in Brazil.
1) Creation of a Brazilian Bamboo Society
2) Recognition of Bamboo as a Renewable Non-Wood resource by IBAMA (Our forestry department responsible for auditing our national territory and controlling deforestation/devastation of Brazil's rainforest)
3) A decentralized democratic network which the Foundation ties together to form a federation of charter members, brought together for mutual benefit, synergy, and cooperation regardless of affiliation.
4) Creation of BambuBrasil.org as a Portal for ALL BAMBOO in BRAZIL, not limiting itself to, free email for bambu-brasil yahoo discussion group members, bamboo intranet, forums, events, calender, online workshops, database system, dynamic content management system, photo galleries, and whatever our imaginations and hearts can conjure..
5) Creation of a National Herbarium or regional centers to collect native endemic species. We would like to partner with our friends at BOTA (Bamboo for the Americas) http://www.bamboooftheamericas.org/ and share their noble goals:
"The Bamboo of the Americas project is committed to accomplish the following:
-Seek international and host country participation and assistance.
-Enhance the awareness of bamboo in the host countries while attaining environmental objectives.
-Document the habitat of native bamboo in host countries.
-Assist in the construction and management of a native bamboo center and a propagation nursery in the host countries.
-Collect and propagate native bamboo in the correct climate zone of the host countries.
-Develop economic and distribution plans for the bamboo nursery in host countries.
-Coordinate eco-tourism and educational groups in and to the host countries.
-Develop a national collection of living native species, including a herbarium.
-Begin research in the native species; including habitat, utilization and range. Priority given to endangered species.
-Implement protection, propagation and restoration of habitat to native bamboo species.
-Research and identification of the native species leading to an educational display garden at a major eco-tourism resort.
--
Thank you for your time and attention if you managed to read this long posting. This is for immediate release and will be subsequently translated into Portuguese/Spanish/German for better understanding amongst other non-english speaking members.
Best Regards,
João Paulo Freire Paglione "Aprendiz de todo, miestro de nada"
-An Admirer
It is not enough to run, one must arrive and know when one has arrived. - Nigerian proverb
Aislarse es morir, pero compartir con otra cultura es como estar renaciendo una y otra vez.- Carlos Fuente
"Die Beschäftigung mit Erde und Pflanzen kann der Seele eine ähnliche Entlastung und Ruhe geben wie die Meditation" - Hermann Hesse. [from bambus.de]