In 2008, the Bamboo School was established by the Mechai Viravaidya Foundation to be a lifelong
learning center for students as well as other citizens and a hub for social and economic advancement.
This school strives to produce a new generation of honest, capable, and socially-conscious students
who will perform at their full potential. The Bamboo School has also launched a new integrated rural
development initiative to assist government primary schools in poor areas to also become a lifelong
learning center and hub for social and economic progress in that area. This project is now known as
the School-Based Integrated Rural Development program (School-BIRD).
For his efforts in various development and educational endeavors, Mechai Viravaidya has been
acclaimed with numerous awards, recognition, and honorary doctoral degrees. These include the
United Nations Population Award, the Bill and Melinda Gates Award for Global Health, the Prince
Mahidol Award for Public Health, the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Public Service, and the Skoll
Award for Social Entrepreneurship. He was also named one of Asiaweek’s “20 Great Asians”, and
one of TIME Magazine’s “Asian Heroes” to mark the magazine's 60th year of its publication in
Conference Organizers
Asia.