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Every fall, for the last 27 years, the Idaho Forest Products Commission sponsors an annual Forest Products Week Essay Contest. This year’s submissions were exceptional! “Our judges had a difficult task this year. In fact, we had so many terrific essays that we awarded first place and honorable mentions in six divisions instead of the…

Olivia Shan had an idea: she wanted to connect a group of at-risk kids from a north Idaho high school to nature. “We wanted to give the students a way to connect with nature, learn about our native tree species and be introduced to natural resource careers,” says Olivia.  After hearing about a grant opportunity…

To encourage, recognize and support the creative and innovative use of wood in architectural design, the Idaho Forest Products Commission sponsors a Design With Wood Competition for students from the University of Idaho School of Art and Architecture and Washington State University‘s Architectural Studies Program.    More than 100 students participated in this year’s event!  U-Idaho’s Brannon Jordan of Minneapolis was the…

Ann Hewitt’s 5th grade class was recently treated to lessons in forestry with Dr. Dan Miller (who also happens to be Hewitt’s dad) during a forestry tour in the woods of North Idaho.   Miller knows a thing or two about forestry.  In addition to being a guide on nearly 40 Idaho Forest Products tours…

Affordable housing across the nation and in parts of Idaho is at a crisis level. Half of U.S. renters are living paycheck to paycheck because they’re spending more than 30 percent of their incomes on housing.1 Meanwhile, the U.S. Green Building Council says buildings account for 39 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions per year…

The world’s oldest tree, a 9,550 year old spruce, was recently discovered in Sweden.1 This new-found spindly record holder is old even for a tree… right? Perhaps you are asking: How long does a tree live? While there are a few ancient giants (and dwarfs) who have seen humans move from tribal life to the…