Tucker Robbin's Wood

Marcella Echavarria (ME) : Why wood?

Tucker Robbins (TR) : Wood would if wood could, the most giving of all, nature's home is in the woods, historically the great forests are community land yet it's most perilous threat is the individual out of context, often politician, who use it to line their pockets. The story of wood runs parallel to human civilization and is as varied and more common than the villages that wrap this glorious earth. The landfills of the industrialized nations are overflowing with wood whereas the developing world’s forests are shrinking. Wherever humanity is compromised their forests are poached. Wood is a common denominator amongst people and those commonalities are culturally uniting elements. While the developed world can experience healing by working with materials at hand such as wood. Where as through education and collaboration, the developing world can experience healing through the resourceful handling of its fallen trees, honoring artisans, salvaged woods, protection of its forests and the replanting of trees.

ME: How can wood be a sustainable material? what are some of the challenges and ways to approach its responsible use?

TR: Our forests produce the oxygen needed for our survival, support our planet's biodiversity, provides the physical materials and the sanctuary for our artists, poets, artisans, and all life. Our forests are the green of the Green Movement and are here for us to enjoy, responsibly so that this life sustaining treasure is here for our children. There are many responsible approaches including; forestry stewardship, agrarian partnerships, salvaging fallen materials and reusing building materials. The people who live in or next to forests are the best caretakers and often they are craftsmen and or farmers.

One successful partnership is the interdependent relationship of the shade coffee growers who maintain the forest canopy while allowing filtered light to reach their coffee bushes. When the canopy overcomes the coffee, trees must come down and the artisans are called to remove these large trees. This integrated community of farmers and artisans empower and balance each other while supplementing the incomes of each other. These communities work in harmony and sustainably with each other and nature.


Our growing man-made and natural world experiences, expansion and contraction while artisans utilize the fallen materials from construction, road building, storms and old age. Cooperation between industry and the artisans will enable a more balanced approach to growth. In The Philippines and Sri Lanka where the World Bank has financed road building there are trees coming down that can be utilized rather than destroyed.


Our rural population is in decline, opening opportunities for the re-purposing of abandoned wooden houses and tools. While those left behind find their wooden houses unpractical for modern life so they would happily trade their wood for concrete blocks

ME: What is your vision towards the preservation of traditional cultures?

TR: We live within a diverse, complex natural and human world. Some cultures race ahead while others take their time. Neither want to return to the smashing stones or carrying of water but so must the modern dis-ease be balanced and healed. Our resources are our traditions, our great diversity, our living planet and our ability to adapt. Without the grounding and soulful expressions of our history and traditions, our communities suffer from irrelevance and discontentment. The balance of tradition and contemporary knowledge can lead to successful collaborations as found around around the world and best illustrated in pockets of Japan, Scandinavia and Brazil. One preservation tool is the recognition of living National Treasures such as the protection of strategic bio-regions, artisans, ancient trees and other unique beings who remind us of our need for inspiration, healing, growing and community thus the living traditions evolve to serve their societies. As in a forest where biodiversity flourishes and evolves so can our human culture flourish with the vibrant life of a traditional culture along side an ever-evolving contemporary culture. How can we look ahead without knowing from where we come?

ME: What connects you to SURevolution?

TR: SURevolution's philosophy of sustainability while celebrating and engaging the traditional craftsmen is an ever-evolving voice within our material culture. While the artisans need the advocacy of great design, to be well produced and beautifully represented, objects with these elements are rare and even rarely do they come together in a product and ever more rarely do come together as a collection within a company. Well they have at SURevolution making it a global treasure! I am thrilled to connect with it, collaborate with it and unite in celebration of ever evolving traditions and vibrant culture.