Design Interventions for Stimulating Bamboo CommercializationDutch Design meets Bamboo as a Replicable ModelMaterials have a considerable impact on the environmental sustainabilityof the products in which they are used. Due to the increasing populationand consumption worldwide, more raw materials are consumed than can beproduced globally, making especially resource depletion of both abioticand biotic resources an urgent problem.Due to its good properties and high biomass production, bamboo - a giantgrass - could have the potential to help meet the increasing demand forraw materials, especially as a substitute for scarce and slow growingtropical hardwood. Nevertheless, in Western Europe, bamboo, especially inindustrial form, is still a largely unknown material with a small marketshare. In this action research it is investigated how thecommercialization of bamboo may be stimulated in consumer durable marketsthrough the active integration of designers as potential materialchampions by means of design workshops. Besides providing insight into theeffectiveness of this method and the potential replicability to deploysimilar design interventions to stimulate the commercialization rate forother new or lesser known materials as well, this PhD thesis also presentsthe prototypes developed during the project 'Dutch Design meets Bamboo' aswell as the findings of the 21 participating Dutch designers about thepotential of bamboo as a Western designer's material. Finally, theenvironmental sustainability of the various bamboo materials deployedduring the design intervention are assessed based on LCA-methodology andannual yield predictions revealing if bamboo is actually a moreenvironmentally sustainable choice than timber.ContentsPART I: INTRODUCTION 1 Introduction 2 Intervention Development 3 Research DesignPART II: RESULTS 4 Product Evaluation; Market Potential and Innovative Character 5 Product Evaluation; Environmental Sustainability 6 Material Evaluation 7 Impact Evaluation 8 Process Evaluation & Advice for ImprovementPART III: CONCLUSIONS 9 Conclusions & RecommendationsReferencesSamenvatting Appendix A: Respondents Appendix B: Obstacles during New Material Commercialization Appendix C: Obstacles during Bamboo Commercialization Appendix D: Role of Materials in Product Design Appendix E: The Image of Bamboo Appendix F: Main Elements of Action Research Appendix G: Factors of Success and Failure during Product Innovation Appendix H: Product Prototype Evaluation Sheets Appendix I: Environmental Assessment of Bamboo Materials Appendix J: Carbon Sequestration by BambooEpiloguePublicationsColophonCurriculum Vitaehttp://www.vssd.nl/hlf/m015.htm