Super Typhoons Make Farmer in the Philippines Grow Bamboo for Toothbrushes

After growing up watching his father barely make a living through slash-and-burn agriculture in the Philippines province of Sultan Kudarat, Mark Sultan Gersava became a bamboo “chief executive farmer” to help other farmers earn more – while straying away from plastic pollution.

His company, Bambuhay, uses bamboo to make straws, toothbrushes, tumblers and charcoal briquettes. Though only in its second year, Gersava says that the company has already sold around 400,000 reusable bamboo straws, and has partnered with the Philippines government and farmers to replant 540 hectares of deforested land through the company’s Bamboo AgroForestry Program.

At the One Young World conference in London, England, Gersava explained what pushed him to take the step of launching his company. “In the span of one year, I experienced two super typhoons (and) the hottest measured temperature in Philippines history,” he said. “This was the first time I had faced the direct consequences of climate change.”