Sustainable Furniture Council moving forward
By Thomas Russell -- Furniture Today, February 4, 2007
Las Vegas — The Sustainable Furniture Council met with about 30 vendors, retailers and suppliers at the Four Hands showroom during market to update the industry on its plans.
With a board of directors in place, the group is developing sustainability standards and promoting the use of sustainable raw materials in furniture.
South Cone owner Gerry Cooklin, who is president of the Sustainable Furniture Council's executive committee, said the group, formed in October, has about 40 members representing companies committed to using environmentally friendly and sustainable products in furniture. This includes, but is not limited to, trees harvested in managed forests to permit and sustain long-term growth.
Along with creating an agenda of events for the coming year, the group is working on sustainability standards for member companies. A key goal is to create standards that promote environmental conservation, social equity and economic development.
"All these have to work together," Cooklin said, adding that for more than 100 years the focus has been almost exclusively on economic development.
Citing issues such as global warming and a dwindling amount of natural resources, he warned that there could be dire consequences if action isn't taken now.
"To me, sustainability is about the human race," he said, noting humans have only been around for the past 20,000 of the planet's 4.5 billion years. "It's not about the planet — the planet will continue living. ... To me, sustainability is about how do we stay alive on this planet."
Cooklin said that about 40% of the wood his company uses is sustainable.
He and other speakers urged companies to size up where they are in using sustainable materials.
"Go back and look at your business and look at what you are doing and find things that you are doing now and the things that can take some time," added Steve Freeman, a vice resource manager for Minneapolis-based retailer Room and Board. "As a retailer, we are looking at everything we do."
But for these efforts to be successful, officials agree the sustainability movement must be actively promoted among consumers. Then, Cooklin and others said, those consumers will start asking more questions and demanding products with sustainable materials.
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