Making a place for furniture made with natural wood is one of the best things you can do to reconnect with nature in your home. It gives warmth to your space and can contribute to emotional and physical wellbeing. Shape, pattern, and texture are all elements of wood that help us reconnect to nature. This is Biophilic Design at its best.
Why Biophilic?
The Wood, Housing, Health and Humanity report by Planet Ark in 2015 compiled several studies conducted, primarily in commercial spaces, showing the extraordinary health benefits of incorporating wood elements in interior design. Ranging from lower blood pressure, reduced heart rates, stress levels, diabetes control, and even lower risks of dementia; the benefits were well documented. Studies like this showing the benefits of incorporating natural elements into designed spaces may be part of the reason that Biophilia is gaining much recognition and popularity in residential spaces as well.
Can It Be Sustainable too?
With this discussion of reconnecting with nature comes the question. How do we resolve the conflict of furnishing our homes with natural materials while maintaining respect and stewardship in the manufacturing of those products?
The good news is that there has been much progress. Green choices with sustainable products are being offered by more manufacturers and small artisan shops than ever before as concerns and awareness of problems surrounding depletion of our natural resources have emerged.
It is important to say that there are no perfect answers. Solutions are complicated when speaking about sourcing products like recycling and sustainability. What may be very eco-friendly in one respect may fall short in another way. For example, choosing an eco-friendly product that is made from recycled material is good but how far did the product need to travel to get to you? …and what are the processes involved in the manufacturing of those materials? Think of the impact on other waste factors resulting from manufacturing and travel such as fuel cost and carbon emissions. Once we begin to evaluate the sustainability of a product it becomes clear that there are many things to consider. It can be overwhelming but worth the effort to make good choices that provide us with the connection to nature that we crave and protect it as well.
It is possible to furnish your home with beautiful wood furniture, new and recycled with a little knowledge. I have created a checklist of considerations, standards, and solutions that can help you make informed decisions about the products that are right for you.
LEED: 5 Principles of Green Building Design
Leed is one of the most widely recognized sources for establishing sustainable design practice and provides certification in many areas of building including commercial and residential.
The checklist is organized around 5 of the principles of green building design established by LEED that are useful in evaluating the sustainability of wood furniture. This is followed by resources and considerations that apply and can help you make an informed decision when you are ready to purchase.
1. Location and Transportation
Sourcing locally is one of the best ways to minimize the emissions and fuel costs to the environment. Small artisan woodworkers are a great source to consider when searching for eco-friendly products. Not everyone lives within 100 miles of a sawmill but even if you don’t it makes sense to source raw materials coming from 1000 miles away instead of halfway across the globe right?
2. Water Efficiency
Regardless of whether you choose to buy locally or from larger manufacturers there is much you can do to ensure that you are buying from those that are using responsibly sourced wood. Global deforestation can impact the water footprint during the harvesting process. Water Efficiency in harvesting the wood covers a wide range of issues. While there is still room for improvement, two of the most widely accepted certifications to look for are:
FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) and the
PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification).
Both are internationally recognized certification networks that ensure wood was harvested from a source managed according to the required specifications with environmental, social, and economic best practices.
The National Wildlife Federation provides a scorecard showing wood furniture companies and how they rank in striving to source and produce sustainable product. It is a list of some well know names such as IKEA who earned a nearly perfect score. Others earning top scores in a wide range of price points were Mitchell Gold and Bob Williams, William Sonoma, Crate and Barrel, and Target. Here is a link to the 2019 edition.
3. Energy and Atmosphere
Wood doors, flooring, and structural elements are natural insulators and retain heat making them extremely energy efficient. Wood tops are warm to the touch in contrast to other materials for countertop applications, shelving, and seating.
4. Materials and Resources
Sourcing new wood furniture that has been made with materials certified by the FSC or the PERC ensures that best practices have been followed with a series of principles, objectives, and criteria with respect to harvesting and preserving the forests for future generations.
Species such as Bamboo and Cork are exceptionally eco-friendly due to their natural ability to grow fast and rapid replenishment once harvested.
Reclaimed or recycled wood furniture is a great way to repurpose existing wood and can be transformed into beautiful works of art and function.
Wood furniture is timeless not trendy. It can be repaired. Because wood is so durable it can be used for 100 years, meaning it can be a perfect choice for heirlooms that retain their worth over time and won’t be destined for the landfill any time soon.
5. Indoor Environmental Quality
Air pollution from sawdust and ventilation processes in the manufacturing process are harder to assess but checking manufacturers websites can often be helpful in determining how committed they are to eco-friendly practices.
There are new low VOC paint and non-toxic finish options, glues, and adhesives available that help improve air quality and most manufacturers will offer information on them if they are part of their process.
So, there it is. I hope this guide will help you sort through some important considerations that will help you make choices that enhance your connection to nature with wood furniture that is also sustainable making it a win win!
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