August 2019, an ICBR delegation led by deputy director Mr. YIN Gangqiang attended the first ASEAN Bamboo Congress and conducted research on bamboo industry technical cooperation among Belt and Road countries. Minister of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines was present at the meeting and gave a keynote speech on bamboo and climate change, in which he praised the active role bamboo plays in greenhouse gas emission reduction, carbon sequestration, forest and biodiversity protection and livelihood improvement.

Mr. YIN Gangqiang, on behalf of ICBR, presented ICBR pictures and souvenirs to Mr. Roy Simatou, Minister of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines. The members of the delegation also had a working lunch with the Philippine Bamboo Association and some representatives at the meeting to coordinate and push forward the bilateral cooperation that China and the Philippines have conducted on bamboo germplasm resources preservation and bamboo processing technology. During the delegation's stay in the Philippines, it also investigated the ecological park, bamboo craft market, bamboo organ culture in Manila, and the community bamboo house project in Iloilo City, where the conference is located.

The ASEAN Bamboo Conference is mainly for bamboo scientific research institutions, enterprises and governments in the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar and other countries in the ASEAN region. The conference focused on the four areas of bamboo's response to climate change, namely bamboo resources and environmental sustainability, bamboo resources and inclusive development, bamboo resources and economic stability and bamboo research and policy with more than 40 academic reports and 20 posters.

Through the exchanges and on-site investigations, the delegation deepened understanding of the bamboo research and development level, bamboo resources, bamboo processing, bamboo product market and bamboo culture of the Philippines and the ASEAN.