Bamboos are a diverse group of mostly evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Bamboos include some of the fastest-growing plants in the world, due to a unique rhizome-dependent system. Certain species of bamboo can grow 91 centimetres within a 24-hour period, at a rate of almost 40 millimeters an hour (equivalent to 1 mm every 90 seconds).This rapid growth and tolerance for marginal land, make bamboo a good candidate for afforestation, carbon sequestration and climate change mitigation.

(Direktlink, via Book of Joe)

This video introduces the process of crafting a bamboo briefcase made from a single bamboo.
Kyoto has been the capital of bamboo from long ages ago due to its environmental condition.
Kyoto bamboo has been used in the tea ceremony and flower arrangement. In addition to this, it is also used in tea rooms and especially in the Japanese traditional architecture in order to embody the beauty of the Japanese tea culture.
There is a craftsman who makes briefcases from such bamboo made in Kyoto.

(Direktlink, via Massimo)

We choose bamboo as it is easily accessible and grows in most countries and is easy to build using just hand tools. As it grows, it uses 30% more CO2 than conventional timber. Once built into a bicycle it has stronger tensile strength than steel and offers a unique ride with superior vibration dampening,

(Direktlink, via Designboom)

(via RBYN)

Greenchamp Bikes will jetzt Laufräder aus Bambus bauen und die fetzen voll ein. Nicht nur optisch. Kosten für so ein Teil dann $165,00. Kann man machen, die aus Holz waren zumindest damals noch teurer.

greenchamp bikes is a bamboo-crafted child’s balance bicycle for kids from 18-months through 5-years-old. the pint-sized product stems from the belief that children’s toys should be made from eco-friendly, sustainable materials, while maintaining a lightweight and super durable frame — ensuring easy maneuvering for youngsters who are first learning to ride. greenchamp uses two specially developed technologies during production: honey is infused into the bamboo fiber to prevent cracking while frames are double-walled (1 bamboo is fused between 2 bamboo walls to ensure the durability of the bike). nature-based joints and bamboo framework promotes the smoothest ride possible for your child. the vibration dampening effects of the natural materials compliment the child’s riding style for a glide-like feeling with maximum comfort.

Am 30. Mai startet die Kickstarter-Kampagne dazu. Warum man die jetzt schon ordern kann, wird mir gerade nicht klar. (Langsam wird mir dieses Internet-Vertriebszeug ein wenig zu kompliziert.) Fakt allerdings ist: wenn die Kickstarter-Kampagne klar geht, kann man diese Teile auf jeden Fall kaufen. Und vielleicht hab‘ ich ja irgendwann mal Enkelkinder. Ha!
(via Designboom)