Tegu: Wood Blocks for Building the Future

These aren't your ordinary building blocks. And thank the good lord, because what plain old piece of wood could hold its own in today's techie toy world? Exactly, sawdust.

Tegu wooden blocks reinvent the age-old toy for the 21st century. What looks like little more than a piece of tree can fill a crucial role in a child's development. Playing with blocks helps build hand-eye coordination, balance, counting and symmetry, and lays a foundation for learning in all areas: science, social studies, language and the arts.

Naturally, Tegu starts out with eco-friendly European Beech wood to build these cleverly innovative toys. They've even employed magnets to get wood to things it normally doesn't do, like defy gravity. And, although these building blocks may be inspired by the past, Tegu is nothing, if not moving forward.

After watching kids and parents test drive their prototypes, co-founders and brothers Chris and Will Haughey, Head Elf and Chief Blockhead, respectively, were overwhelmed by creativity and innovation they say. According to their website, "It reminded us of what it was like to proudly bring our masterpieces home from school and then to see them displayed on the refrigerator door!" And so Show 'n Tell was born. The site's "virtual refrigerator" allows kids to check out other designs, as well as post their own.

But, the goodness doesn't end there. Like most great products, Tegu is built on a great story. While on a business trip to Honduras in 2006, Chris asked the question: “Could we create a for-profit company based in Honduras that would foster a positive social impact through its business?” In the same progressive spirit, he discovered the answer: "Tegu — a toy business founded to address unemployment, neglected natural and human resources, and the need for entrepreneurship in Honduras."

Over the course of the next few years, Chris and Will left their jobs on Wall Street to develop and grow Tegu into the flourishing business it is today. And, beyond fostering economic, social and environmental sustainability for the community of Tegucigalpa, Tegu has two programs that give back even more.

To replace the trees lost in Honduras during the 1990s (nearly 1 in 10), the toy company plants trees in the region. So far they're at 3,444 trees, which can be purchased on the site. They also have a program to help 200 kids, who live on the area's municipal landfill, get off the dump and into the classroom. 60 bucks can send a child to school for an entire month. That's like, 14 grande lattes.

Basically, Tegu rocks. They build innovative toys for kids, look out for the environment and fosters the community in which it resides — doesn't get more modern than that. So, get on the waiting list, all those other people can't be wrong.

Photos courtesy Tegu.