view from rainforest mountain

 

Here at Oak Furniture UK, we are deeply passionate about where we get our wood from, and recently we conducted a survey to see just how much people knew about sustainably sourced wood, and other factors associated with deforestation.

 

Have people heard of sustainability certifications?

 

One of the first questions that we asked people was whether or not they had heard of any of the world’s largest wood certification schemes. From the findings, we were able to observe that the Forest Stewardship Council was the most recognisable schemes, although almost as many people stated that they had not heard of any schemes whatsoever.

This is interesting, as although over half of the people who took the survey had heard of at least one certification scheme, the vast majority of people stated that no conservation or sustainability certificate had influenced their purchasing decisions in the past.

On the other hand, we were able to observe that out of the 980 who took part in the survey, just over a third stated that they found sustainability to be an important factor when purchasing furniture. Additionally, just under half of people found it to be ‘fairly’ important.

 

certification schemes popularity survey

 

 

But will people pay more for sustainably sourced wood?

 

We also found that despite the fact that some people may not be well informed on some sustainability certifications, the majority of people were willing to pay more for furniture sourced from sustainable projects.

Although palm oil plantations have recently been hailed as a possible saviour of the rainforests in one regard, scientists agree that more control is needed to curtail the industry of illegal logging.

Interestingly, the survey also covered this topic and asked, “do you think any of the furniture imported into the UK is made from wood sourced via illegal logging?” Out of the 980 people who answered this question, 627 believed it to be true.

 

uk imports of furniure made from illegal logging survey

 

According to Greenpeace:

“There are no laws in either the UK or the EU to ban imports of illegal and destructively logged timber.

“Coupled with weak governance and corruption in timber-producing countries, this lack of legislation allows unscrupulous logging companies and timber traders worldwide to exploit ancient forests.”

There are therefore a number of organisations, including Greenpeace itself, pressing for regulation throughout both Britain and the EU.

According to the responses in the survey, the impact of buying furniture in developing countries is a big concern for people who are looking to buy wood based furniture. In fact, only 17.24% of people stated that they did not care about the impact their furniture made.

Of course, deforestation has a colossal impact on a range of aspects, from soil erosion, to species deterioration and newly discovered factors, including the effects that the practice has on weather patterns across the globe.

 

What is being done to raise awareness?

 

 

beatufiul planet earth painted on a pretty women face

 

Although there are many regulatory bodies across the world who are currently working on the issue, one of the biggest global events is Earth Day, an annual event designed to educate people on the plight of the environment.

Having been in existence since 1970 (when it was a once-in-a-decade event), Earth Day has reached hundreds of millions of people across the planet, with 192 countries now observing the day.

But how well known is it amongst the people who took our survey?

Happily, the majority of people had actually heard of Earth Day, although less than 10% of respondents stated that they were going to do anything for Earth Day 2015.

It seems therefore, that although Earth Day does have the ability to touch people all across the world, this does not determine whether those people actually have an interest in taking part in any activity that the network provides.

With the few who said that they were to actually do something for the event, the majority said that they would be taking part in the events with their family, which poses the question of whether this should be the path that the organisation takes to increase the interest of people around the world.

 

How did people think awareness should be raised?

 

Possibly one of the most important questions in our survey, was when we asked people how they thought that awareness of deforestation could be improved.

Quite unsurprisingly, the bulk of respondents thought that influence within the media would be an apt way to spread awareness.

 

raise awareness of furniture made from sustainable wood survey

 

Interestingly, this is in keeping with industry experts, who also conclude that the best way for an environmental body to spread its message or influence is via the media – or more precisely, social media.

In an article published by ABC Australia writer, Murray Hogarth, states that social media cannot only help save the environment, but could actually save it in its entirety:

“People with big issues like the future of the planet are populating social networks with serious content, connecting up locally and globally, as businesses and brands vie with celebrities and public figures in the most dynamic forums on Earth.

“Here, I believe, smart social change movements will prosper, intractable industries with 'bad' products or attitudes will struggle, and new brands genuinely helping a sustainable future will become much loved.”

Other popular responses included government intervention and environmental initiatives.

What do you think can be done to help save the rainforests?

Let us know with a comment below!

 

close shot of a toucan bird