What is the CCBS and what can it do for Cambodia?

Bamboo is one of the most useful materials that nature provides. In western cultures bamboo has limited distribution, and correspondingly less importance in those cultures. In bamboo growing regions, that utility is beyond measure. Bamboo deserves a center of research, collect information and make recommendations on new and useful ways it can be used in Cambodia and for export.

These separate ways we use bamboo, from eating, to eating utensils, to furniture and crafts is continually documented, and new information here would be championed by the CBSS. Two important topics can be immediately started under CBSS governance are adaptations in construction and by products

Construction

Concrete construction has the down-side in that if a building falls into obsolescence, it is abandoned, and the property it sits upon is now worthless. In many cases, a semi-temporary structure is preferable: pens for livestock, greenhouses, pavilions are examples where bamboo could and should be a candidate for use. Technologies like the pre-fabricated joints described in the attached appendix “truss” would make construction and repair of all these semi-temporary structures within the reach of all.

By-products

Charcoal

Bamboo makes excellent charcoal prized for it’s filtration and cooking abilities. Bamboo charcoal is used to filter water and alcohol for drinking, it removes odors from closed areas, and very importantly, starts and burns more quickly for roadside grills and barbecues. Additionally, the thinner wall structure of bamboo makes conversion faster than a thick woody mass. Recent advances in charcoal retorts can be found and adapted for use in Cambodia. One such survey is attached in the appendix “charcoal”

Bamboo Snow

A topic of original research is with a natural, and inevitable by-product of bamboo: Bamboo Snow, the frass of the Dinoderus Minutus fed a diet of bamboo, is a substance so completely digested and devoid of anything except the cellulose of the cell walls. As such, it acts as an organic mediator by absorbing, dehydrating, eliminating odor, stopping bacterial action and cleaning nearly any surface. It is highly human compatible, and is suitable for personal skin and hair care. Cambodia’s nearly limitless sources of bamboo, if channelled and produced for local and western culture, could provide enormous opportunities for both remote villages and Phnom Penn’s central commerce. The monitoring required for remote agricultural production is central to this effort, and is within the technical reach of Prek Leap’s students.

Charter

The Prek Leap National Institute of Agriculture (PLNIA) is perfectly located to coordinate the academics, logistics and resources needed for this project.

The Cambodia Center for Bamboo Snow (hereafter CCBS) is founded to coordinate the research needed to document and adapt to Cambodia the abundant research into bamboo and the by product named Bamboo Snow - the frass of bamboo as eaten by the beetle Dinoderus Minutus. CCBS will coordinate and fund the resources needed for these activities. CCBS facilitates the interaction and collaboration between researchers from agriculture, remote computer monitoring, and manufacturing technology who have common interests in real-world applications. CCBS provides them the necessary infrastructure and environment to carry out research activities.

In addition, CCBS contributes to the education of undergraduate and graduate students, with a goal of preparing them for careers and graduate study in remote monitoring, agriculture, processing, quality assurance and uses of the substance. The center seeks to increase the participation of highly qualified undergraduates – particularly those from underrepresented groups – in careers and/or graduate studies in fields that require a strong background in agriculture, remote monitoring and this new substance. Through these activities, CCBS strengthens the research and education capacity, infrastructure, and culture of PLNIA.

The center accomplishes these goals by conducting interdisciplinary research projects through the participation of faculty members at PLNIA, fostering partnerships and collaborations between academic departments, building collaborations with similar institutes and centers at other universities, and proposing joint projects with local and national industries. The aim of the center is to function as an independent and self-sustained entity. Its proper function depends to a great extent on external funding.

In the arena of education and mentoring, CCBS serves as a bridge between academics and interdisciplinary careers in associated careers. It provides highly motivated and dedicated students with solid training in agricultural and computational sciences by engaging them in group and individualized research projects of an interdisciplinary nature. Participating students will discover the intricacies of real-world scientific problems, and experience the rewards of interdisciplinary work in agriculture and technology.