Don't Take Any Wooden Nickels

The old saying reminding us to be cautious and know what we're buying applies in the global timber trade. Some woods are much more valuable than others. Shipping a load of Brazil's big leaf mahogany into a country labeled as $9000 worth of less expensive timber can make a huge profit even if it is relabeled correctly and sold below real market prices. The American Forest and Paper Association estimates U.S. firms that use legally harvested domestic wood lose up to $460 million a year competing with this kind of undervalued, illegally logged timber. Globally, illegal logging makes up to 30% of the $150 billion a year trade in forest products.

     There are sustainable, legal ways to harvest timber, but logging companies have taken advantage of poor oversight in some countries by just putting roads in tropical forests and harvesting and exporting endangered, heavily regulated species of wood, like West African kosso. On the world market, those involved in the illegal timber trade also smuggle endangered species, illegal drugs, weapons, and slaves. Harvests of protected rosewood and ebony in Madagascar invite captures of rare wildlife, while orangutan in Indonesia are endangered along with the country's valuable tropical forests. Like the diamond and jade trade, illegal timber sales have been known to finance armed conflicts in the form of genocide, coups, and civil wars.

     Efforts to combat the illegal timber trade and its damaging side effects include government regulations and laws and consumer awareness. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) provides regulations authorizing country customs officials to confiscate illegally harvested logs being shipped through the world's ports. In the U.S. the 1900 Lacey Act and its 2008 amendment ban trafficking in illegal wildlife and illegally harvested timber and require seizure of such products and fines. Since the Lacey Amendment also makes it illegal to sell a wood product in the U.S. that contains wood that has been illegally harvested in the country of origin, U.S. retailers and other companies that sell wood products need to be sure to buy from legal sources.

     Celso Correia, Mozambique's new minister for land, environment and rural development, is an African who has learned to play the game illegal loggers used to win by relying on weak law enforcement and corruption. As few as three years ago, a report from the nonprofit Environmental Investigation Agency stated 93% of timber in Mozambique was cut and exported illegally, mainly to China, the world's largest log importer. China's illegal timber imports deprived Mozambique of at least $400 million plus taxes. Mozambique now seizes more illegally cut timber exports, but the country is competing with an insatiable Chinese demand for raw timber. In The House of Unexpected Sisters, which is set in Botswana, Africa, the author writes about a store that sells furniture made from Zambezi teak and mukwa wood, "none of this Chinese rubbish."

      Mozambique and other African countries are facing long odds when they try to replace deforestation with sustainable forest conservation methods that protect woods,  such as the desirable Pau Ferro, and when they try to attract responsible Chinese companies willing to process logs into more valuable planks and furniture within Africa.


     Consumers do have a way to be sure they are buying legally sourced wood and paper products. Just as kids can help adults check for an ENERGY STAR on appliances that save money by using energy efficiently, they can look for the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) logo of a check mark and tree on wood and paper products. When items like toilet paper, bookcases, doors, and picture frames come from forests that meet environmental, social, legal, and economic standards, they carry the FSC logo. Learn more at fsc.org.

(Also see the earlier post, "Uncover the Economic Value of Wood.")
   

   

Uncover the Economic Value of Wood

We are used to valuing trees because they absorb greenhouse gases (See the earlier post, "A Healthy Environment.") and provide the shade other crops need to grow (See "Coffee Prices Going Up, Allowances Going Down?"). But at a recent 4H meeting of young people who enter their animals and agricultural projects in competitions at county fairs every year, one of the members demonstrated the value of trees after their growing days are finished. Seeing the bowl he had made out of a variety of local woods started members thinking.

     What happens to trees that are uprooted by wind and storms, trees that are removed to make room for roads, utility poles, and developers' projects, evergreen trees after Christmas, and all the area trees that have been removed because they were infested by the emerald ash borer insect? Some dead trees are used for firewood, but others just rot.

     When my sister was in college, I remember she drove several students in one of her art classes to a lot that collected bits and pieces of wood. I have the statue she carved, sanded, and oiled to show, not only the form of a woman, but also the beautiful grain of the wood she used. Besides the grain of wood, the perfume of freshly sawn cherry tree logs first attracted the man who now owns a custom-made furniture business.

     Beyond firewood, there is a market for useful and beautiful objects made from the world's sustainable and rotting wood. Leafing through a catalog from SERRV (serrv.org), I saw how artisans in the Philippines had turned coral tree and acacia wood into birdhouses and bowls, Bangladesh craftsmen had used albizia wood to make stools, and carvers in India had stained and transformed mango and shesham wood into tables. I've also read how a Mozambican wood carver sold an expensive three-foot-tall ebony sculpture to a tourist in Kenya.

     Clearly, trees can play an important role in sopping up greenhouse gases that cause global warming, and wood products can boost a country's economy. A UN study concludes forest land the size of South Africa has disappeared since 1990. In square miles, an article in TIME magazine (September 28, 2015) shows deforested areas have been lost fastest annually since 2010 in the following countries: Brazil (3,799 square miles), Indonesia (2,641), Burma (2,108), Nigeria (1,583), and Tanzania (1,436). Before turning trees into logs for export, these countries and others need to consider how builders can use whole trees instead of steel to support structures and how an increase in their middle class populations represents the income potential of future furniture markets. Moreover, Global Witness and the Environmental Investigation Agency reports illegal logging of rosewood in Madagascar deprives the country of $460,000 a day. Illegal logging also has been used to fund conflicts in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

     Kids might begin to get an appreciation of uses for wood by making craft projects out of Popsicle sticks. They might go on to think about finding jobs operating tractor-powered sawmills, learning how to dry wood, or if they would like to sell products made from wood. Who knows, some day they may be in a position to invite architects and planners to consider showcasing local woods in major projects. For more ideas about the use of wood, check wisconsinurbanwood.org.



   

A Salute to Flags

Flags are a ready reminder that the world is divided into countries. In front of teams marching during the opening and closing ceremonies at the Olympics, athletes are honored by being chosen to carry the flags of their countries.

     Just as families often keep track of the state license plates they see, flag authority William G. Crampton suggests noting the date they see various country flags in person or on TV at school, post offices, hotels, parades, and sporting events. In Usborne's spotter guide to Flags of the World, Crampton includes an alphabetical list of 201 flags. Like a field guide to birds and wild flowers, this pocket-sized book helps spotters by illustrating flags in full color and by providing short descriptions of what colors and flag emblems represent. Another good source of the world's flags in full color is the website, printableworldflags.com.

    Vexillology is the study of the symbolism, history, and usage of flags. Countries assign meanings to the colors on their flags. Surrounded as they are by water, islands often choose blue. White is used to symbolize Buddhism and peace. Haiti and some African countries include black to represent their citizens. Yellow can mean mineral wealth, a royal color, or the sun. Green, the color of Mohammed, also has been used to represent jungle vegetation. Red may stand for bravery, courage, or a bloody struggle for independence.

     The three-colored flags, known as tricolors, that represent independence throughout the world have their origin in the 16th century orange, white, and blue Dutch flag that is considered the first republican tricolor. In turn, the Dutch flag inspired the blue, white, and red tricolor associated with France's 1789 revolution and, ultimately, flags flown throughout the world from Armenia to Yemen. When mass production began in the 18th century, flag manufacturers welcomed this type of         three-color design simplification.

     Just as many flags are associated with the struggle for independence, others express dedication to a religion the way Christian crosses do on the flags of Greece, Malta, Switzerland, and Tonga. Throughout the Muslim world, the crescent and star symbols of Islam and/or the green color of the Prophet Mohammed appear on numerous flags in the Middle East and Africa. South Korea and Mongolia fly flags with the yin and yang symbols of opposites associated with Buddhism, while symbols of the Jewish faith, the prayer shawl and Star of David, appear on Israel's flag. Of special interest are flags of countries that recognize that their citizens practice more than one religion. The white stripe on Pakistan's flag represents Hindus, Christians, Buddhists, and other religious minorities in this mostly Muslim country, while Sri Lanka's flag includes an orange stripe for Hindus and a green one for Muslims.

     Stars representing mankind's heavenly goal have been a popular flag motif for centuries. In fact, stars also communicate a number of modern day messages. As in the case of flags representing the U.S. and Brazil, stars denote the states in each country. The Philippines, the Comoros, Cape Verde, and Tuvalu use stars to number their principal islands. Malaysia's flag, on the other hand, represents its 13 member states and its capital's territory with 14 points on one star.

     Countries also use their flags to recognize features that make them unique. Cambodia's flag pictures its famed 12th century temple, Ankor Wat. The coat of arms on Slovenia's flag includes the country's Triglav Mountain, and Lebanon places a cedar tree that grows in its mountains in the center of its flag. Granada touts its nutmeg production and Belize its lumber industry; while Kenya, Lesotho, and Swaziland display traditional tribal war shields and spears on their flags. Iran's flag repeats the inscription, "God is Great," 22 times to mark the date of its victorious 1979 revolution. Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Samoa note their position in the Southern Hemisphere by including the Southern Cross constellation on their flags. To symbolize the Equator, Nauru draws a yellow stripe on its flag and then uses a star to indicate its position south of the Equator.

     Various activities can involve children with flags. At the pbskids.org website, they can play a "Bingo" game with countries and flags by going to the Arthur icon, then clicking on the picture of the bunny, Buster, and "Connect the World." Staging a parade of nations is a fun party or rainy day activity, especially when children wear hats or other pieces of clothing from foreign lands. United Nations Day on October 24 is a great time to organize such a parade. In addition to marching behind the Stars and Stripes, children can use construction paper to make less complicated parade flags for: Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Indonesia, Japan, Chad, Gabon, or Mali. Tape these flags to straws, play a John Philip Sousa march, and a parade begins.

Flags change

Like children, flags change. From 10,000 public suggestions for a new flag, New Zealand has selected 40 designs that will be reduced to four for a public vote later in 2015. In 2016, there will be a referendum to decide between the current flag and the new design.

    After Columbus's voyages, Spain changed the motto on its flag from "There is nothing more beyond (Gibraltar)" to "There is more beyond." Once the U.S.S.R., Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia broke apart, their flags disappeared and countries that were part of these nations, such as Azerbaijan, Slovakia, and Croatia, created new flags. Likewise, when countries become independent from former colonizers, they create new flags. South Africa no longer flies the orange, white, and blue tricolor based on the Dutch flag that was raised when colonists arrived in 1652.

     When other countries achieved independence, they, like Kenya, Mozambique, and East Timor, often adopted flags similar, if not identical, to those of the nationalist groups that led the struggle for sovereignty. Antigua and Barbuda, although they elected to remain in the British Commonwealth after achieving independence, use their flag to proudly announce victory over colonialism by showing the sun of a new era rising out of a "V."

     At the beginning of the American Revolution, George Washington's troops fought under what is known as the Grand Union flag which displayed England's St. George and Scotland's St. Andrew crosses in the upper left hand corner where the stars are today. On June 14, 1777, however, to represent the original states, a circle of 13 stars, suggesting a new constellation, joined the 13 alternating red and white stripes already on the Grand Union flag. As new states joined the Union, both stars and stripes were added to the U.S. flag until 1818, when Congress decided too many stripes would make the flag's design unwieldy. Since then, stars have represented the current number of states and stripes represent the original thirteen. Between 1776 and 1801, England's flag changed as well. Today the flag of the United Kingdom combines the 13th century red cross of St. George, patron saint of England, with the Scottish cross of patron, St. Andrew, which was added in 1606 and the modified Irish cross of St. Patrick added in 1801.

     One way to demonstrate the notion that a flag represents a country's changing history is to create new flags for children as they get older. At first, a little white bunny might be pasted on light blue or pink felt that is looped over a dowel and hung on a string. By helping children design their own flags as their personalities develop, they will get a feel for the decisions a country made when creating its flag. What colors will they choose and why? Will they use a symbol to represent their favorite subject, hobby, or pet? Finally, they might include a motivational saying or slogan, such as "Throw strikes" for a baseball player or "Break a leg" for a budding actor.