This project's main goal is to promote knowledge building in partnership with the extractivist community through research actions to adapt and generate technologies and innovation for the sustainable use of bamboo forests, and diversify production activities in the Chico Mendes Extractivist Reserve with the insertion of bamboo into the production systems of the production units.

In Southwestern Amazonia, on the triple frontier between Brazil, Peru ,and Bolivia, there are forests where arborescent bamboo prevails, which encompass an area of approximately 18 million hectares with the presence of woody bamboos, whose stems can reach heights of over 30 meters and diameters of over 20 centimeters, composing the Amazonian tabocals, as they are locally called. A great part of this type of bamboo forest is found in Acre state, with expressive occurrence in the Chico Mendes Extractivist Reserve; however, they are very little used due to the lack of knowledge and tradition in the use of this raw material, which is blurred by the preference for wood, once abundant in other times.
The rising levels of deforestation in the Amazon due to the expansion of the agricultural frontier are a constant concern for several organized sectors or society. This pressure over forests is also a result of the growing demand for timber and timber byproducts, highlighting the need to find alternatives to such material, which is increasingly unavailable and costly. Among these alternative materials, bamboos stand out due to their quality and high versatility, as they are called "the wood of the future" or "ecological wood", and they might be the solution for many segments of the Brazilian economy, with applications in the sectors of cellulose and paper, civil construction, furniture making, arts and crafts, lamination, charcoal, among others.

Bamboo cropping is a reality in several regions of the world, especially the Asian continent and the successful experiences in Colombia and Ecuador. In Brazil, some initiatives are already known for using bamboo to develop technologies and generate business; however, there is the need to invest in research and development programs that can generate scientific knowledge to ensure the sustainability, technological innovation, and visibility of the use of bamboo, so as to optimize the respective social and economic benefits.

This research project takes place within this context, and it was executed in partnership with several institutions, such as the Support Services for Micro and Small Businesses (Sebrae) and Acre's state Government, through Acre's Technology Foundation.

The option was to act within the Chico Mendes Extractivist Reserve once it is understood that these Extractivist Reserves (Resex) were created as alternatives for sustainable development, supporting environmental preservation and promoting the inclusion of traditional populations, ensuring their access to lands. The Chico Mendes Extractivist Reserve was a pioneer in securing rubber tappers' rights, but deforestation persists and tends to worsen, especially with stockbreeding’s tendency to expand due to the lack of viable production alternatives. Studies regarding production activities in the Reserve have shown that the production destined to the market leads to low net earnings, an indication that the system urges for modernization. The social and economic viability of the Chico Mendes Resex depends on the diversification of production activities based on the resources available in their forests - which are currently limited to nuts, occasionally rubber, and some few non-timber products, in addition to subsistence farming and the worrisome expansion of stockbreeding, which is generally preferred due to the easy management and high liquidity. The management and use of native Guadua bamboos, which are abundant in the region, is an excellent alternative for the diversification of production activities, once it is a raw material whose demand tends to increase and an enterprise deemed to be sustainable. This project aims to incorporate a new crop at the Resex based on the sustainable management of Guadua spp., and contribute to improving socio-economic indicators of the local population, either through the use of bamboo in the construction of houses and other rural facilities with reduced costs or the insertion of bamboo-derived products in the market.