Background

After the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in coastal Ecuador on April 16, 2016 we started our journey as bamboo builders. To date we have sourced, trained, and employed dozens of local builders and hundreds of students students. We build 8-10 bus stops, stores, homes and other structures a year in collaboration with local carpenters, architects and our international student programs. In total, we’ve build 22 seismically safe homes, and 60 other businesses/shelters. Since 2017, we have been planting bamboo to restore degraded riverbeds in our ranch, Los Arboleros Farm (LAF) in Chone. We are in the process of nurturing our growing bamboo groves and creating curing facilities at LAF to increase the supply of regenerative cured bamboo on the coast, as well as continuing to offer bamboo building courses for local and international guests. Learn more here.

Why Bamboo

Bamboo is a rapid growing, strong and flexible building material that is locally available and abundant throughout most of Ecuador. The species RFI uses is called Guadua angustifolia or Caña Guadua in Costeño (coastal) Spanish. It is known for being ‘acero vegetal’ or ‘vegetable steel’. Guadua bamboo is in fact stronger than steel, with a much more environmentally friendly supply chain. Bamboo enriches the landscape by preventing erosion, storing carbon, and creating habitat for birds, insects and endangered Mantled Howler Monkeys among other animals.