How important are forests? How important is the wood we harvest from forests? The answer to both questions is - crucially important! We can imagine the role forests play in ecological function of the globe, but have you ever really considered where we would be without wood? The truth is we are dependent on both, and that is not going to change. In the re-release of his 1989 book “A Forest Journey” John Perlin explores the “Role of trees in the face of civilization.”

Resources

Forest Journey: The Story Of Wood And Civilization

Sponsors

West Fraser

GreenLink Forestry Inc.

Quotes

16.08 - 16.17: “Wood being the primary fuel enabled our species to survive.”

Takeaways

John’s books (05.41)

John’s first book delineates the history of solar energy to generate heat, which inspired him to study the importance of wood in doing so. His second book discusses how “we have misunderstood the underpinning of all cultures” based on the material that was deemed important in that age.

The living planet (18.20)

Archaeopteris, the first true tree, ensured the Darwinian evolution of terrestrial life. John’s book talks about how 130 million years later, an excess of carbon dioxide due to deforestation nearly caused all large life to become extinct. 

Sustaining civilizations (24.55)

Humans’ use of wood for fire, tools and cooking, allowed them to congregate for the development of language and storytelling. Fire also helped in hunting and made nighttime safe, while aiding in developing settlements and metallurgy-based technologies.

Trees influence history (32.07)

Greek mythology is based on fire, and the presence of wood defined the Greek empire. Masting timber was the first cause of conflict in the American colonies. Differences also developed over the use of wood between Indigenous Americans and settlers. The defeat of the British also occurred because of the lack of masting timber.

We are living in a material world (49.08)

John highlights that planks under roads are wooden, and ceramic needs fire to be created. Wood has been used to produce fire for countless applications in metallurgy, and there used to be entire economies based on wood.

Trees protect (1.00.03)

John explains how biodiversity is a natural barrier to diseases and removing forests removes predators of disease-causing organisms, which can lead to an epidemic or pandemic. On the flip side, what may be perceived as directly harming trees may in fact be harming another species that fertilizes the soil.

“There’s nothing new under the sun” (1.11.07)

John is constantly inspired to gather knowledge, collect ideas and accumulate information and share it through his books and lectures. He talks about opposing schools of thought in forestry and the anthropomorphization of and ageism against trees, causing misinformation to live in the world.

The web of life (1.18.51)

John was fascinated to learn that roots do most of the carbon sequestration by creating carbonates which go all the way down to the oceans, where they become locked in the limestone and help animals like mollusks and gastropods build their shells.

Facing forward (1.21.52)

John has faced flak for expressing his opinion on how all humans bear the responsibility for resource depletion and turning “the world into a wasteland”. His book explains how landscapes have been completely transformed over time due to deforestation.