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Tagua nuts in various stages of processing.

MATERIALS

Cubes - Tagua

Because of its close resemblance to animal ivory the nut of the tagua palm has a long history as a useful product . Before the invention of plastics tagua was used to make buttons, jewelry, dice, chess pieces and cane handles. In fact, some expensive "ivory" pieces from the Victorian era were made from tagua nuts.

Tagua products are experiencing a comeback in an effort to protect endangered species such as elephants, whales and walruses that have been a source of animal ivory . In one year a tagua palm produces the same amount of "ivory" as one female elephant. The tagua nuts, however, are harvested by hand without harming the tree.

In addition to protecting animal ivory, tagua products help preserve tropical rainforests by providing a sustainable income for forest peoples. Renewable rainforest products such as tagua can help prevent the degradation of forests into low quality farmland and cattle pastures. The sale of tagua products also helps forest peoples make the transition to a cash economy when they are unable to survive in a completely traditional lifestyle.

The tagua palm is a small understory tree of 20 to 30 feet that grows in damp areas of moist tropical forests in Panama, Ecuador, Colombia and Peru. The tagua nuts grow in large armored clusters with each cluster containing many egg sized nuts. The nuts are at first of a jelly like consistency and edible but eventually harden to resemble animal ivory.

The Tagua Initiative by Conservation International is one example of a successful project that has reintroduced tagua as a commodity of global importance. Tagua buttons are now being sought after by socially conscious clothing designers and the Tagua Initiative has sold over 75 million buttons to apparel companies such as the GAP, Banana Republic, J Crew and Patagonia.

Tagua in Panama
In Panama, the sale of tagua products provides income for forest peoples such as the Wounaan and the Embera of the Darian Rainforest who are often unable to continue living a tribal lifestyle. The construction of the Pan American highway through part of their homelands has resulted in deforestation and colonization by outsiders.

With their traditional resource base eroded, indigenous villages near the highway are finding others ways to survive. Many villagers have migrated to the city where they find it difficult to obtain jobs. Wounaan and Embera men often depend on the sale of their tagua carvings to support their families. They have refined their traditional carving skills to develop an art form that is becoming a collector's item in the outside world. A few years ago a well known Wounaan tagua carver, Selerino Cheucarama, won third prize in a UNESCO craft competition. Tagua carvings from Panama are now much sought after by collectors of fine ethnic art.

Frames - metal, wood

Frame materials for Mia Placo are recyclable. Use of exotic hardwood for frames will come from hardwood flooring scraps. We continue to explore frame materials that are sustainable and eco-friendly.

Tweezers - handcarved bamboo

Bamboo is a sustainable forest prodct.

Instruction/Info Booklet - Printed on Banana Paper

Banana paper is made from vegetation scrap after the harvest of bananas. It is fully sustainable and eco-entrapaneurial, providing much needed income for peoples in the developing world.