Kenyan-born environmental entrepreneur Camille Rebelo is the co-founder of EcoPlanet Bamboo, a company quietly changing how we fight climate change, protect forests, and lift rural communities out of poverty.
Initially, all Rebelo wanted was to stop deforestation. However, somewhere along the way, she started a business that now promotes global conservation and protects the environment.
The problem she couldn’t ignore
The world’s demand for wood-based fibre, used in everything from toilet paper to clothing, is driving massive deforestation. Forests are being cleared at alarming rates to meet industrial needs, and most solutions have fallen short. Tree plantations take 15 to 20 years to mature, and conservation grants fizzle without long-term financing.
Drawing from more than a decade of experience in forest conservation, carbon markets, and sustainable forestry across Africa, Latin America, and Asia, Camille Rebelo had grown disillusioned with traditional conservation efforts that often relied on unsustainable grant funding and slow-moving policy. The timber, pulp, and fibre industries driving deforestation had no scalable, sustainable alternatives. So, she set out to create one.
In 2010, Rebelo joined forces with American investor and entrepreneur Troy Wiseman. Together, they co-founded EcoPlanet Bamboo, built on a simple but radical idea to meet the world’s fibre demand without cutting down a single tree.
EcoPlanet Bamboo
EcoPlanet Bamboo rehabilitates degraded land—land that is no longer productive for agriculture or other uses—by establishing industrial-scale bamboo plantations. This is not ornamental bamboo, but tropical clumping bamboo explicitly cultivated for its ability to produce high-quality fibre.
The plantations serve industries such as textiles, packaging, pulp and paper, and even engineered timber. They provide a renewable, tree-free fibre source that grows to maturity within five to seven years and can be harvested annually thereafter.
The company operates in Kenya, Ghana, Rwanda, South Africa, and Central America and manages over 37,250 bamboo plantations.
By targeting severely degraded land, EcoPlanet Bamboo avoids competing with food production, restoring soil productivity, improving water tables, and supporting biodiversity. Their bamboo plantations have already removed over 1.5 million tons of carbon dioxide, a verified milestone under the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS).
Moreover, the company holds Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification, adhering to some of the world’s most rigorous environmental and social sustainability standards.
Beyond environmental restoration, the company’s impact on local communities is equally noteworthy. EcoPlanet Bamboo has created over 750 stable jobs in underserved rural regions. Approximately 35% of the company’s field teams are women, and more than half of the management team is female.
Today, EcoPlanet Bamboo generates revenue by supplying bamboo fibre to global markets, producing sustainable products like sanitary paper and moulded packaging, and selling verified carbon credits. The company also provides clean, deforestation-free biomass alternatives such as bamboo charcoal, which helps reduce dependence on traditional charcoal and contributes to energy sustainability, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.
The climate innovator’s leadership extends well beyond her role at EcoPlanet Bamboo. Camille Rebelo serves on the Global Restoration Council and advises governments on forest certification and climate policy, ensuring that private-sector innovation informs public policy. In 2014, the U.S. Department of State recognised the company with the Award for Corporate Excellence. Since then, EcoPlanet Bamboo has received multiple international honours, including the IAIR Award for Sustainability.
