Zambikes International is a Californian company set up in 2010 that provides worldwide distribution for Zambian-made Bamboo bicycles, providing increase employment and impact into the lives of the Zambians who make them.
In Zambia, unemployment is over 50%, literacy is low, and school is not free. Finding a job supports more than the individual; it also supports their children, brothers, sisters, and the entire community. When you buy a bamboo bike, you are employing 40+ Zambikes workers that are a part of an entire community being developed in Lusaka West, Zambia.
The bikes seem to be hi-tech and high price, too, but here is one of the thousands of startups that are based on a hybrid model that does well by doing good.