Coming together for Bamboo

have endeavoured to share their knowledge with as many others as they could. But although this made the information available locally, it did not contribute to the global knowledge of the important plant that is known today as "green gold". The First International Bamboo Congress was held in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico in 1984 with the express purpose of bringing together

researchers and experts in (L±, tiBAi

various fields of bamboo

to present, exchange

and share research and d 71 iv

Fe

knowledge on a common

platform. Sponsored by the American Bamboo Society, the results of the Congress

 

were published in a journal which was made available free of charge. Subsequent Congresses had many projects reviewed and initiated, including poverty alleviation, bamboo species census and mapping, structure design and bamboo basket crafts. The VII World Bamboo Congress in New Delhi in March 2004 covered issues like bamboo tissue culture, species identification,carbon sequestration, wood substitution, flooring, bamboo preservation and more.

Over the years, the World Bamboo Congress (WBC) has become a unique event that encourages global interaction by providing a platform for direct networking and sharing of ideas and information. In the last 15 years the WBC has grown to attract at least 400 participants from more than 30 countries around the world, including world-renowned experts in bamboo design, construction and architecture. For any professional who works with this amazing resource

 

 

Province, a few hours outside of Bangkok. The first stop was at a bamboo products factory which made bamboo furniture, paneling and flooring. The next stop was a bamboo shoot farm with numerous acres of bamboo, mostly Dendrocalamus aspen The workers at the farm graciously cut fresh shoots for people to eat raw and gave rooted branch cuttings to the participants who requested them. The final stop was the ceremonial bamboo

planting. A representative

Y•

from each country was selected to plant a

' bamboo in a new grove.

,

which was established

"

C., to commemorate the

conference and the International Bamboo Day declared at it.

Given the enormous amount of information presented during the four-day Congress, it would have been difficult for almost everyone to comprehend and retain all. Recognizing this fact, the organizers presented to each participant a CD containing transcripts of all the papers presented. The 1200 pages also contain contact information for each presenter