Americans like to pig out on a lot more than just junk food -- take wood, for instance. The Rainforest Action Network has determined that of the 15 billion cubic feet of wood that our world's citizens consume annually - in the form of such regular lifestyle staples like assorted paper products, disposable tableware, fuel, lumber and furniture - U.S. citizens gobble up twice as much compared to other industrialized global nations and three times as much as developing countries...in other words, 17% of the world's wood resources that are harvested on a yearly basis. Some say that since timber is sustainable and derived from managed forests, it is akin to harvesting food crops - so there should be no great concern - however, The Rainforest Action Network highlights the other side of the argument by pointing out that:
1) Carbon pollution filtration/air quality is compromised.
2) Climate of the earth is directly impacted.
3) Soil becomes infertile and the likelihood of erosion and landslides is increased.
4) Wildlife populations are threatened.
5) Vast amounts of energy via production, processing and transportation are consumed.
6) Toxic pollutants are released into the atmosphere, water & ecosystems.
7) Indigenous people are displaced.
8) Wasteful wood/paper consumption habits perpetuate vicious cycle.
German designer Kai Linke is currently working on a greener alternative to our insatiable taste for wood furniture, entitled "Roots". While his project is still in the prototype stage, the mini plant root furnishings in his collection have so far successfully taken hold and Linke intends to take his long-term experiment to the next level with full sized versions in the next few years.
Living furniture that celebrates Mother Nature rather than cutting it short has been executed in varying degrees, whether via Mingling Wang's Oxygen of Green concept, Michel Bussien's Growing Chair or my personal favorite, Peter Cook and Becky Northey's Pooktre Garden Chairs.
Link proposes a fairly different twist on the theme by coaxing tender grass, cress, bulb, bamboo and hyacinth roots to solidify within Lucite chair forms, ultimately removing their exterior structure and leaving the organic framework behind. Sure, this effort may seem a little out there - after all, how on earth does he think that anything other than tree roots will be capable of supporting the varied weights of human bodies? - but the enterprising eco-designer definitely deserves a round of applause for tackling an undoubtedly intriguing concept that, if successful, could give our forests a much-needed break.
I'm especially curious if people in the green community think that this is a worthwhile furniture alternative. Are you turned off by the idea of sitting on a solified root ball or do you think that Kai Linke is onto something good?
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