Wood and Sustainabilty- Designs for the net-zero carbon world

Written by peace Ada Anthony

Wood has been used for thousands of years for fuel, as a construction material, for making tools and weapons, furniture and paper. Wood is a structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic material that has been a part of our lives since the beginning of time and woodworking has played a vital part in the advancement of civilisation. The earliest evidence for woodworking comes from acacia wood residues clinging to pebble hand axes found in Tanzania.

We all grew up with wood, our innocence and lack of sense of self could not stop us from discerning wood, from its often times dusty smell to its appeal. Remember those school desks where you shared the most precious memories of your life; sitting down listening to your teacher speak and hey! what about the crazy lunch break where we would go crazy, jumping, making sketches and writing on our desks because why not, to the kitchen stool we would watch our mothers sit on after doing some work? yeah, that’s wood. it was seen as a tool for rest and one of the most abundant and versatile natural materials.

In recent times with the clamour for government, and corporate bodies to come up with initiatives that drive sustainable growth there has been a subtle shift in social, and cultural practices. As the effect of climate change is already being felt in multitudes of ways causing illness and death. This has led to increased awareness among people. Consequently, more people are adopting sustainable lifestyles that involve adopting environmentally friendly practices.

The effect of the foregoing has made the use of the word ‘sustainability’ increasingly popular not only based on theory but in practical seen terms: sustainability is holistic in nature; it promotes maintenance and recycling.  When it comes to sustainable furnishing it has eco-friendly characteristics which ensure that it can be recycled and repurposed. In the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Member States express their commitment to protect the planet from degradation and take urgent action on climate change.  It aims to reduce zero waste in production industries. Hence, all raw materials and supposed “waste” should be optimized.

Your curious mind might wonder why wood is advocated for as a viable means of protecting the green when it involves the cutting down of trees which is considered harmful. Why?

The answer lies in the nature of wood. Wood is renewable and recyclable- yup….When Compared with competing building materials such as metal, plastics, stone, and concrete, wood offers a series of benefits – the key among these is that it is a renewable resource – as a natural product, wood supplies can be renewed by planting new trees and sustainable forestry. When transformed into wood furnishing wood is renewable as old wooden furniture can be reconstructed thereby eliminating waste. Looking for some future statistically, presented predictions on how the use of wood would contribute to reducing the impact of climate change? well,dovetailinc.org articulate that the use of wood could help remove an estimated 21 million tons of C02 from the atmosphere annually—equal to taking 4.4 million cars off the road.

The by-products of wood can be used as biofuels. According to dovetailinc.org, sustainable use of wood helps to moderate the rise of CO2 levels in the earth’s atmosphere, thus partially mitigating the greenhouse effect.

At 27th Architects, we realize that our activity impacts the planet directly, so we incorporate sustainability practices from sourcing, and production to service delivery. You can aid in the efforts of furniture manufacturers as they become more sustainable by using sustainably sourced materials from companies that are conscious of their environmental impact. Visit the 27^th architects store at www.27tharchitects.com/store  to bask in the goodness of wood because wood inspires us!