“Bam-what?” you ask. It’s simple. A bambowtie is a bamboo bowtie.

My Brooklyn-based cousin Nicole Mercado and Yoram Savion of YAK Films were in Manila a few weeks ago. We were hanging out at The Collective where they introduced me to artist Dee Jae Pa’este and environmentalist Bryan McClelland who were busy laying out a pile of bambowties on our table. They strung out bambowties on the spot for Nicole, Yoram, and of course, one for me.

There wasn’t much sales talk needed; the cool design was enough to win me over. But the deal was made sweeter when Bryan explained the science behind the bambowtie.

Each bambowtie is handmade by Tarlac-based community members of Gawad Kalinga, a community development organization in the Philippines. Proceeds of the sales go directly to Gawad Kalinga, which helps fund sustainable projects such as building self-sufficient communities for the poor.

The team behind bambowtie sells them for P500-650 each at various events and bazaars around Manila. To know where they’ll be popping by next, visit their Facebook page.

April 16, 2012