World Bamboo Day is celebrated on 18 September every year. Conceptualized by the World Bamboo Organization (WBO), this day is celebrated globally to spread awareness about bamboo conservation. Bringing the immense potential of bamboo as an alternative resource to the forefront, World Bamboo Day is also celebrated to promote the global bamboo industry.
Bamboo can be used as a substitute for numerous unsustainable resources, thereby contributing to a greener environment. The sustainable utility of bamboo and spreading awareness to save bamboo plantations also come under the ambit of World Bamboo Day.
World Bamboo Day - History
World Bamboo Day was declared official on 18 September 2009 at the event of the 8th World Bamboo Congress conducted in Bangkok. The day was conceptualized by Kamlesh Salam, former President of the WBO, and delegates from around a hundred countries.
Bamboo day is celebrated every year, ever since the World Bamboo Congress conceived its idea. The idea behind this day was to create awareness about its potential as a sustainable resource and its numerous uses in the following areas:
- Environment preservation
Significance of World Bamboo Day
The bamboo plant is known for being one of the fastest-growing plants in the world. It is versatile and culturally and economically significant in Southeast Asian, East Asian, and South Asian parts of the world. Bamboo day holds great significance because it promotes the usage and preservation of bamboo plants.
During the celebration of the bamboo day, awareness is spread regarding the plant's utility in personal and commercial spheres. Find more information about the same in the given points:
- The strength of the bamboo plant allows it to be used dynamically for purposes like creating housing materials, art, musical instruments, etc.
- Bamboo is also a prominent food source in countries like India and China.
- Through World Bamboo Day, the WBO aims to help people acknowledge this versatile plant's cultural, economic, and environmental significance.
World Bamboo Day - Facts
World Bamboo Day is celebrated because of the lack of awareness about the usage of the bamboo plant. This plant can be used to fulfill a broad spectrum of requirements. Through the celebration of this day, awareness about the ecological importance of the plant is being spread. Find some facts about bamboo day below:
- The bamboo plant is also green gold or poor man's timber.
- This plant can grow anywhere, requires deficient maintenance, and has versatile potential.
- Bamboo plants can help in the reclamation of wastelands and severely degraded areas.
- It acts as a suitable soil binder and plays a significant role in water and soil conservation.
- In India, one can notice the usage of bamboo across cultures, primarily across India's vast and varied tribal communities.
- From household utilities to furniture, houses, artifacts, and textiles, bamboo's usage can be found in every avenue of human imagination.
- In Northeast India alone, there are about 110 varieties of bamboo plants.
World Bamboo Day 2023
World Bamboo Day 2023 will be celebrated on 18 September 2023, and the theme for the same has not been disclosed yet. This day marks the celebration of the bamboo plant, known for its versatile uses. On this day, awareness regarding the commercial, personal, and sustainable use of bamboo is talked about.
World Bamboo Day 2021
Like any other important day celebrated internationally, World Bamboo Day is celebrated around a theme each year. World Bamboo Day 2021 theme was "#PlantBamboo - It's time to plant bamboo." The theme was developed after realizing that the awareness around the bamboo plant is spreading to more and more people through the efforts of the WBO. However, bamboo plantations are not growing at the rate they should.
World Bamboo Day 2021 Theme
#PlantBamboo - It's time to plant bamboo
Explanation of Theme
A call to action for planting more bamboo to tackle various environmental, ecological, and commercial challenges.
Why Do We Need to Celebrate World Bamboo Day?
According to the experts at the World Bamboo Organization, even after the massive potential of bamboo, its utility has not been sustainable. While bamboo products generally pinpoint towards a more conscious and sustainable lifestyle, there is an innate need to plant more bamboo to preserve them for future generations. Bamboo day celebration emphasizes this crucial point and spreads awareness about the same.
World Bamboo Organization, which is a member of the United Nation's Global Compact, agrees with the foundations laid by the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and sees immense potential in bamboo to play a vital part in restoring the ecosystem by 2030 (following the UN's declaration of 2021-2030 as the Decade of Ecosystem Restoration). Thus, it comes up with new ideas for spreading the word about the importance of bamboo every year on World Bamboo Day.
FAQs on World Bamboo Day
Q.1) When is World Bamboo Day celebrated?
World Bamboo Day is celebrated on 18 September every year. This global event prioritizes spreading awareness about the importance and versatile usage of the bamboo plant.
Q.2) Who launched World Bamboo Day?
World Bamboo Day was conceptualized and launched by Kamlesh Salam, the then President of the World Bamboo Organization, along with various delegates from around the world on 18 September 2009.
Q.3) How many species of bamboo plants are found in Northeast India?
As many as 110 species of bamboo plants are found in Northeast India. The cultivation and usage of the bamboo plant are extensive in the Northeastern states for a variety of purposes.
Q.4) How do we celebrate bamboo day?
Bamboo day is celebrated on a global level on 18 September every year. This day remarks on the significance of the bamboo plant and its commercial, environmental, and personal usage.