Commodity Online
NEW YORK: Bamboo's sustainable properties, environmentally-conscious product applications and relevance within a changing climate are the intertwined themes of the VIII World Bamboo Congress to be held from September 16 to 18 at Bangkok.

The three-day conference and expo is a World Bamboo Organization event and will coincide with the 113th anniversary of Thailand's Royal Forest on September 18. The celebration will also mark the declaration of September 18 as World Bamboo Day. .

The largest gathering of professionals in the bamboo industry to date, the program will feature three days of lectures, presentations and demonstrations related to bamboo propagation, product application, sustainability and environmental properties and economic development. Topics covered will include architecture, construction, plantation management, landscape design, regional reports and other presentations in development.

During the afternoon of Friday, September 18, the declaration of World Bamboo Day will be celebrated with traditional Thai music and dance as well as a ceremonial bamboo planting in a Bangkok park under the auspices of Dr. Boonvong Thaiutsa. Saturday, September 19 will be a field trip to local sites of interest, and a five-day post-conference tour to the Northern Thailand region is planned.

Keynote speakers are Dr. Surin Pitsuwan, Secretary General of ASEAN, Dr. SongkramThammincha of Kasetsart University Faculty of Forestry in Bangkok, Dr. Walter Liese of Hamburg, and internationally recognized designer John Hardy, the founder of Green School in Bali.

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A total of 12 sessions are planned for the Congress. To date they include:
1)Bamboo in Thailand and South East Asia
2)Bamboo and the Environment
3)Resources: Forestry, Plantations, Conservation
4)Biology & Taxonomy
5)Horticulture and Landscaping
6)Community and Economic Development
7)Arts & Crafts
8)Production, Design & Industrial Aspects
9)Material Properties of Bamboo
10)Architecture and Engineering
11) Policy & Trade
12)INBAR Projects

The Congress is sponsored by Thailand's Royal Forestry Department, Kasetsart University Forestry Faculty, the National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department (DNP Thailand), the United Nations International Development Organization (UNIDO), Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Japan Bamboo Society and the National Bamboo Mission (India). (Courtesy: PRWeb)