ariefindobamboo@gmail.com

Arief Rabik is the Chairman and Founder of Bamboo Village Trust and serves as the lead for the UN Decade Action Plan Challenge in Indonesia. His pioneering initiative aims to create economic viability through the use of bamboo agroforestry to sequester CO2 and restore degraded tropical forest lands. The project is currently launching in Indonesia, with the goal of establishing 1,000 bamboo villages to restore 2 million hectares of degraded land. Looking ahead, the initiative aims to scale to 10,000 bamboo villages, restoring 20 million hectares across the tropical belt of the world.

Following the legacy of his mother, Linda Garland, a global pioneer in the bamboo industry, Arief's connection to bamboo began at an early age. Over the past two decades, he has become an expert in bamboo cultivation, value-added processing, and mobilizing public and private investment for village-level bamboo production. As an environmental scientist, Arief specializes in bamboo forest management and has led various initiatives aimed at promoting the sustainable use of bamboo.

Arief's leadership extends to his role as the Director of Indonesia’s Environmental Bamboo Foundation, where he launched the 1000 Bamboo Villages project. This visionary project seeks to establish a "forest-to-factory" system by developing village-level bamboo nurseries, standardizing agroforestry practices, and creating economic incentives for expanding bamboo markets and supporting the restoration economy.

In 2019, Arief was recognized as the first awardee of the Climate Breakthrough Award program focused on land use, a significant acknowledgment of his agroforestry work. His efforts are especially impactful in Indonesia, where the palm oil industry has driven deforestation for over two decades. Arief's commitment to bamboo forestry and environmental restoration aligns with his broader leadership in sustainable land use and community-driven conservation efforts.

Energetic, strategic, and a skilled coalition builder, Arief is as comfortable working alongside local producers as he is engaging with corporate leaders and policymakers. His work continues to promote bamboo as a vital resource for restoring ecosystems and building sustainable economies.