Bamboo grows in abundance throughout Asia and is used by the local people for a variety of purposes. It is potentially a great material to make surfboards from. 

The majority of surfboards today are made from fibre-glass (Silicon Dioxide). Bamboo naturally contains this substance, is stronger than fibre-glass and also has its own buoyancy. This allows it to be used with a less expensive foam blank (when covered with bamboo weave or matting).

Matt's original idea was to produce bamboo surfboards & skateboards in Laos, giving women and young girls employment so they would not have to leave their village to find work (and often then exploited by the sex industry). This would give the people in Laos a trade, a sustainable income and when the boards were sold, create profit which would help reduce poverty.

Matt explored setting up a workshop in Laos but it was not a financially viable option at that time. He also explored using bamboo matting sourced from Laos to produce surf/skate related items here in the UK. The profits from these items would be invested straight back into the projects in Laos and Thailand.

Sourcing bamboo matting from Laos has not been a viable option either yet, but perhaps in the future this is something that can one day be accomplished.