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Today on the podcast we have the privilege of talking with Dwayne Sperber of Wudeward and the Wisconsin Urban Wood Non-Profit. In the midwest 15 years ago an urban wood movement emerged, this came about from identifying an abundant and underutilized product. Not wanting to waste some truly beautiful and storied wood, the private sector raised their hand and decided to find a way to use these trees. This led to the development of Wudeward, and a collective of other urban wood pioneers salvaging logs and sequestering carbon one tree at a time. In a nutshell, Dwayne organized Wudeward to bridge the gap between an abundance of lumber and those who can and should refine those products. The formation of Wisconsin Urban Wood was a realization of the importance of linking together all the supply chains. Dwayne doesn’t see himself as a leader but more as a member of a collective of many partners. Hearing about urban wood changed his life, and from there he was transformed from a corporate background to one of passion, community, and woodworking. Dwayne attributes his drive to protect and value natural resources to his parents and grandparents who taught him their importance. In the lumber industry, it’s sometimes hard to make the sale on urban wood, but Dwayne says he likes to root for the underdog. Since 1998 he has been working to establish a trusted brand and set of standards for urban wood to give them even footing with their mass milled counterparts. The brand of Wisconsin Urban Wood and the importance of it has led to urban wood being used for bigger and bigger projects. The brand assures consumers that they are following the same standards for urban wood as typical lumber and sawmills. “Lumber has been grade specified and sourced the same way for a century, again we don't have to think about it too much. We have identified an abundance and great potential for a new wood product, and this product fills almost all of the same needs as this traditional lumber.” Dwayne talks about the romantic side of woodworking and what a labor of love the craft is. He also notes that woodworking truly is a community and connecting all parts of it, from arborists to makers makes it very collaborative. On the other side he knows that to make urban wood as popular as it should be and show others the romance of the industry and product, it needs to be seamless and done to the standards of large mills, which is hard to achieve without a lot of effort. Wudeward and Wisconsin Urban Wood have big hopes and plans for what the future of urban wood is going to be like and look forward to potentially having a certification of some kind in the next five to ten years, which would be the next big step for urban wood in an ideal future. As Dwayne notes sadly, the beauty of the craft, unfortunately, is diminishing thanks to non-wood substitutes and things produced en mass, but hopefully certified urban wood could change that. For more on Dwayne, Wisconsin Urban Wood, or Wudeward, check out the info below. http://wisconsinurbanwood.org/about/ https://wudeward.com/about/