What we do
Our focus currently is on housing and construction as two related areas with big impacts on planet and people. Both areas have a massive potential to support Wales’ transition to a socially just low-carbon society.
We organise our work into three categories:
- Knowledge Creation & Exchange e.g. research, technical support, communities of practice, events and communication
- Advocacy e.g. national and local policy development, government consultations and participation in working groups
- Strategic Interventions e.g. collaborative innovation projects, feasibility studies, application of research findings in exemplar housing and manufacturing projects
We support our mission through specific activities across four objectives:
1. Increase the markets for higher-value sustainable timber products
- Work with demand side (e.g. social housing, retrofit, self-procured, developer led, non-domestic & non-construction) to identify, quantify and communicate how timber can help to meet their current and future needs (e.g. low carbon, high performance, affordability and social value)
- Provide guidance and technical support for customers in the use of timber
- Advocate for policy change to drive growth in demand for sustainable timber products
2. Increase the scale, value and purpose of the timber manufacturing sector
- Create manufacturer groups (e.g. joinery and timber frame) to raise ambitions and improve sector response to opportunities.
- Identify and implement strategies to improve the manufacturers offer to customers (e.g. contractors, clients and their consultants)
- Provide technical support to manufacturers to enable the adoption of higher (common) standards and the use of homegrown timber to better address markets in Wales and England
- Advocate for policy change to support an increase in scale, value, resilience and purposefulness of the timber manufacturing sector
3. Increase the area, productivity, value and purpose of the forestry sector
- Identify and promote timber species, forest management and industry practices to support the production of high-value timber for high-value markets
- Promote and support the use of homegrown timber to manufacturers and their customers
- Encourage expansion of the area of high-value forest by identifying potential land (location and ownership) for afforestation and by identifying and developing new financial options for landowners (e.g. local authorities, farmers) and other value-adding investors (e.g. Welsh pension fund, welsh carbon offset model)
- Advocate for policy change to provide a more supportive legislative framework for the development of tree planting, forest industries, land-use change and the use of homegrown timber
4. Promote a high-value, collaborative and more purposeful wood culture in Wales
- Implement a communication programme to raise awareness and raise the level of ambition in Wales
- Development strategies for the delivery of the education, knowledge and skills necessary to support the transformation of Wales into a high-value forest nation
- Create a collaborative culture, joining dots and break down silos, link networks throughout the UK, promote participatory and citizen science approaches and knowledge sharing to help overcome silo thinking, to support wide participation and increase public good outcomes
Our activities bring together stakeholders at different levels of industry and society to make visible existing gaps in the supply chain, evaluate the potential and develop solutions in a collaborative manner.
We work with other sector bodies and NGOs in forestry, manufacturing and construction where our missions overlap. Our unique approach is configured to address the systemic barriers to change.
Our flagship projects demonstrate how we work.
For details, please email us at info@woodknowledge.wales.
