Between October 26 and 29 of this year, the fifth World Bamboo Workshop was held in Guatemala, promoted by the World Bamboo Organization (WBO), Wubu, CASSA and ICDF Taiwan. Under the motto “Sustainable Futures: Leaving No One Behind,” the event brought together more than 200 participants from around the world and included speakers from Brazil, Mexico, France, Puerto Rico, Chile, Peru, the United States, Taiwan and Guatemala.
The community of Punta Brava, located in Los Amates, on the shores of Lake Izabal, was chosen as the venue for the 2023 World Bamboo Workshop. With an institute built with bamboo, new plantations and a pilot project of flood-resistant housing, this coastal town is a living example of how bamboo can be an ally of community transformation and adaptation to climate change, when combined with education, community organization and collaboration.
International speakers and instructors included Peter Van Lengen, Brazil; Martín Mortera Abdi and Mauricio Mora Tello, Mexico; Susanne Lucas and Robert Saporito, United States; Maira Bisquett, Chile; Michel Abadie, France; Li-Fang Tang and Kevin Wenkai Ou, Taiwan; Jo Scheer, Puerto Rico; and Flor Morocho, Peru. Guatemala was represented by: Tono Aguilar, Juan Pablo Martínez, Omar Marroquín, Elisa de la Roca, Julio Lee, Andoni Otaolaurruchi and José Chávez. Practical workshops included: propagation and cultivation, construction, boat design, craft making and edible bamboo shoots. The conferences addressed the benefits of bamboo in the face of climate change, bamboo and bioarchitecture, the contribution of bamboo to the Sustainable Development Goals, the industrialization of bamboo, the culture of bamboo in Taiwan, among others.
The opening of the fifth World Bamboo Workshop was led by Michel Abadie and Susanne Lucas, president and executive director of the WBO; Juan Pablo Martínez, from the Guatemalan organizing committee; Estrellita Leiva, community mayor of Punta Brava village; and Edwin Xol, from the local organizing team. Previous editions of the World Bamboo Workshop were held in Mexico, Peru, India and Vietnam.
We are immensely grateful to our global Corporate Sponsors: EcoPlanet Bamboo, BamCore, and the World Bamboo Foundation.
For pictures, take a look at the Facebook page.
PowerPoint presentations from the workshop conference will be available soon on this webpage.
Where do we go next year? Let us know if you are interesting to host a World Bamboo Workshop!
Thank you to all the people who made this happen, and especially to the friendly community of Punta Brava!
#keepbamboostrong
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