Fair bicycles made of bamboo
The history of "myBoo“Starts with a vacation photo of a friend who is currently traveling through Ghana. On it: a bicycle made of bamboo. That was at the end of 2012 and the recipients of the photo at that time were newly enrolled students in Kiel. She was fascinated by the idea of the bamboo bicycle and so the two fellow students Maximilian and Jonas quickly founded the company "myBoo", which today not only produces and sells unique bamboo bicycles, but also offers real added value for society.
A hundred year old idea, rethought
The idea of a bamboo bike is anything but new. The rapidly growing raw material was used to build bicycles over 100 years ago. The oldest bamboo bike from 1894 was built very differently than the "myBoo" bikes, which are now lovingly handcrafted in Ghana and then delivered to the bicycle manufacturer in Kiel. Here the bamboo bicycles are finally assembled according to the very individual customer requirements.
Unique wheels that enable education
Buying a bamboo bike from “myBoo” not only secures fair jobs in Ghana, but also gives children access to a good education, because the company works with a local school. With scholarships and "school starter sets", which include writing materials and school uniform, children in rural regions are given the opportunity to attend school.
We think the bamboo bikes from “myBoo” are more than worth the purchase. That's why we asked Felix, Head of Communications at myBoo, our three questions.
1. What was or is the motivation behind myBoo?
When the idea for my Boo arose at the end of 2012, the goal from the beginning was to found a company with added value for society. With our bamboo bicycles, we combine a high-quality and innovative product, concrete social commitment and sustainable economic activity.
Meanwhile, about 50 people work for my Boo GmbH in Germany, our partner in Ghana also employs around 40 young people. We are particularly proud of the "Yonso Project Model School", Which is financed from the proceeds of our bamboo bicycles and currently offers more than 300 children access to a high-quality education and also creates over 20 fair jobs.
2. What do you advise our readers to do: What can you do specifically for a better future?
Each of your readers have the chance to decide anew every day what happens with their money. Be it at the supermarket checkout, in the café, in the online shop or even in the bike shop: Everywhere you can consciously decide which product is to be bought and which company is to be supported with it.
We are of course aware that for various reasons not everyone has the opportunity to always buy the good and fair product, hence our tip: Become an expert on a certain topic. The simplest example: decide to only drink water from glass bottles and actively save plastic in your everyday life.
And very important for a better future: ride more bikes. It doesn't have to be made of bamboo, but ride your bike more! 😉
3. How do travel and sustainability fit together for you?
Travel and sustainability go very well together! One of the most sustainable types of travel is definitely cycling. On the one hand, of course, from an ecological point of view, on the other hand, certainly also if you want to remember the experiences of the trip as long as possible. Traveling by bike decelerates and the environment is perceived much more intensely. Long journeys are also regularly made on our bamboo bikes. The longest lasted twelve months and took a couple from Hamburg to China.
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