Attending the workshop were Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Minh Tam – Vice Chancellor of VNUHCM; Mr. Michel Abadie – President of the World Bamboo Organization; Mr. Nguyen Van Danh – Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Binh Duong Province; Mrs. Nguyen Thi Hoang Yen – Deputy Director of the Department of Economic Cooperation and Rural Development; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tran Le Quan – President of HCMUS; Dr. Diep Thi My Hanh – founder of the Bamboo Village of Phu An; and nearly 200 lecturers, experts, and researchers from within and outside the country.

In his opening speech, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Minh Tam said that the World Bamboo Organization has successfully organized the first workshop in Mexico in 2017, the second in Peru in 2018, and the third in India in 2019. Phu An Bamboo Village, belonging to HCMUS, was highly honored to be chosen by the World Bamboo Organization to host the significant event. 

The Vice Chancellor of VNUHCM hoped that by gathering a large number of bamboo researchers from many countries around the world, the workshop would continue to raise the value of bamboo, raise awareness about the importance of bamboo development strategies to protect the environment, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to promoting the image of bamboo, Vietnam, and its people. 

Mr. Michel Abadie said that the 4th World Bamboo Workshop was not only a face-to-face meeting for those who love bamboo but also a moment of innovation – the innovation of a natural alliance between humans and bamboo. That thousand-year relationship was so meaningful, especially in Phu An Bamboo Village of Vietnam, where, above any other places on the planet, bamboo and its natural silica had been proven by human hands to accompany humans in the development process towards a better world. 

The workshop took place from September 17-21. Leading experts from Vietnam and the world presented specialized reports related to bamboo, such as an introduction to bamboo species in Vietnam, solutions for bamboo conservation and propagation based on the experience of the world, bamboo handicrafts production with advanced techniques, the role and application of bamboo in architecture and construction, strategy of planting bamboo on bare hills to reduce greenhouse gas emissions of localities, advanced new materials from bamboo and bamboo fibers in the process of replacing traditional wood materials. 

Within the workshop, there were also activities such as the exhibition of bamboo varieties, tissue culture techniques for bamboo propagation, and bamboo products; announcement of the results of the bamboo architectural design contest; cross-cultural and artistic exchanges related to bamboo; etc.