Bamboo Lota

bamboo lota will use a highly sustainable and renewable natural resource to meet increased growing energy needs of malawi’s urban and rural households through the introduction of a bamboo grove and bamboo charcoal briquette production project. current charcoal production is unsustainable and puts heavy strain on forest reserves. by utilizing locally-available, fast-growing bamboo, the project aims to produce a more environmentally-friendly alternative to current tree-originated charcoal while enabling reforestation efforts to take place in ecologically-strained areas, specifically targeting the zomba region. bamboo lota envisions bringing environmental stewardship to the forefront of community practices while transitioning current charcoal producers into more sustainable bamboo charcoal briquette production. ”lota” means “to dream” in chichewa and our dream is to bring an innovative model of charcoal production to communities in malawi.