Partners in Educating the Next Generation: Missouri Forest Products Association and North American Forest Foundation
The wood flooring or furniture purchased today does more than beautify a home. It helps to promote healthy forests now and in the future because the health–and existence–of future forests depends on a thriving market for wood products. Establishing that market and keeping the forests vibrant and productive involves the efforts of many voices and groups working together.
The North American Forest Foundation (NAFF) and the Missouri Forest Products Association (MFPA) are two of these groups. At the North American Forest Foundation, we use education to reach the next generation and help them understand the value of sustainable forestry and why it’s good to choose wood. We also like to showcase the educational activities of other organizations and share ideas that companies and organizations can adopt as they reach out to the next generation of wood product workers and consumers.
The MFPA promotes the value of forest management and forest product utilization through education and advocacy to help create more, better, and new domestic markets for wood products. And like NAFF, they emphasize educating youth. Recently, MFPA spent $20,000 of their education budget to purchase 200 Truth About Trees kits which will be distributed to schools throughout Missouri as part of their ongoing educational program. We want young people to know “using wood is good and cutting trees is not bad” says MFPA Executive Director, Brian Brookshire. A combination of activities–classroom materials, hands-on games, and a professional magic show–help MFPA reach kids with educational information they aren’t getting anywhere else.
Little Trees in a Big Forest
Written for kids, this book traces the life of a tree from seedling to the point where it becomes a bench. Targeted for fourth graders, but appropriate for various ages, these books are distributed in conjunction with the Truth About Trees kits to classrooms in schools statewide.
Supersize hardwood Jenga games
Forest facts appear on each of the six-inch long blocks that make up each custom-made kit MFPA donates to schools. Illustrating the diversity of Missouri wood, the blocks are made of 10 different hardwood species native to the state.
Marvelous Magical Tree Show
This professional magic show travels from school to school, combining professional magic with information that teaches students about wood products, carbon sequestration, and forestry. Presented at a school assembly, it touches hundreds of kids at a time across grades 4 through 6, with an extended reach as kids share what they learned with their families and others.
Recognizing the need for expanded wood product markets, the Missouri General Assembly has provided MFPA with grant funds in recent years that have supported these activities and enabled them to promote, advocate, and educate young people.
Reaching beyond the elementary school level, MFPA sponsors a tremendously successful Forestry Speaking Contest that helps high school students in Future Farmers of America develop their public speaking skills. MFPA members provide the topics and students prepare and present speeches. The final round of competition is presented at the MFPA annual conference to an audience of 120 or more and winners walk away with monetary prizes and refined speaking skills.
Open to FFA students in grades 9-12, the competition attracts around 40 participants each year. Brookshire says that the kids are sticking with it and they “routinely see kids come back year after year.” The students develop a deeper understanding of forestry along with valuable skills. For some, it sparks an interest in possible career direction.
Long-term forest management is vital; markets for wood products are necessary to support the forest management process. In addition to working closely with the Real American Hardwood Coalition to promote wood products and their use, MFPA is creating outreach materials and building a presence that goes beyond consumers to reach architects and designers who specify wood products in construction. Wood alternatives are made of non-renewable resources through processes that emit–rather than capture–carbon and often these products are not healthy for indoor air in the home.
The MFPA has branched out to join the ranks of exhibitors at the International Builders Show and the American Institute of Architecture meeting. “Wood is the environmental gold standard, “says Brookshire, “the best product to use for the betterment of the climate and the environment.
We’re working to ensure the long-term viability of forest land through educating youth and creating more and better markets for wood products.” What does this mean for you and your business or community? We all need to be involved in the betterment of the industry–and the planet. Use these ideas as a springboard for your own initiatives.
Working together we can make a difference. Learn more about MFPA activities at https://choosewood.com/ and find more educational resources and opportunities on our site. Want to talk, or need a hand brainstorming how to get the message out? Let’s talk.