How can bamboo contribute to the future of healthy building?

Bamboo is one of the fastest-growing plants on Earth, with some species growing up to three feet in a single day. Technically, a grass not a tree, bamboo regenerates quickly without the need for replanting, making it a highly renewable resource. Its cultivation can help prevent soil erosion, restore degraded land, and sequester significant amounts of carbon.

For centuries, bamboo has been used in construction across Asia, Africa, and South America. In its raw form, bamboo has remarkable strength and flexibility, earning it the nickname “green steel.” Engineered bamboo products such as laminated panels, flooring, and structural members are now being developed and standardized for modern architecture and design applications around the world.

Unlike many industrial materials that rely on petrochemicals, bamboo thrives in a wide variety of soils, absorbing heavy metals from the soil and restoring environments.  Bamboo is easily cultivated, harvested, and transformed without intensive energy consumption. It is durable, lightweight, supports regenerative agricultural practices and local economies, and is currently used in over 1000 applications.

This event will convene voices from across the bamboo ecosystem: growers, manufacturers, architects, and innovators to explore how bamboo can play a role in shaping a healthier, more sustainable built environment.

Join Parsons Healthy Materials Lab and The Architectural League of New York for this in-person conversation exploring the present and future of bamboo in design and construction.

This event is co-sponsored with the Architectural League of New York, with a joint interest in exploring a future for architecture made of healthy, regenerative materials.

Register here. The New School students and staff can use code ParsonsBamboo25. 

Recordings from past events in this series are available here: Events on Demand. 

PANELISTS:

• Jonas Hauptman 
• Lucas Oshun
• Elora Hardy 

MODERATORS:

• Paul Lewis
• Jonsara Ruth