Reflections on a Wood Products Career
or
Why I Love Wood Products

by Joe Denig

I remember as a teenager searching for a career that would fit my belief that we needed an ecologically sustainable world, my desire to help people and my enjoyment of working with people from around the globe. I discovered wood. I learned wood was (and is) a wonderful construction material.

Did you know that even thirty some years ago wood was known to be carbon friendly material? [Trees absorb carbon as they grow, turning the tree into wood products sequesters the carbon, and very little energy is required to process it as a usable building material versus steel and concrete.]  I learned wood in the United States and in many other parts of the world comes from a sustainable resource, a forest.  Did you know that every year the United States grows more trees than it harvests?

I was recalling all this recently as I returned from a USAID trip to assist the Kosovo wood product industry produce better products, employ more people and establish a sustainable industry which can help rebuild a country still reeling from a war that ended 10 years ago. Long plane rides are a great time for reflecting and the incredible experience I had in Kosovo inspired me to recall the passion that brought me to a career in wood products 30+ years ago. 

I happily realized that throughout my career from a field forester to my current position as wood products extension leader at North Carolina State University I’ve been doing exactly what I wanted – working toward an environmentally sustainable world and helping people as diverse as the small businessperson in rural North Carolina to the lumber processor halfway around the world. 

And to think I’m stilling having fun and enjoy going to work!  If you think you might be interested in a career in wood or wood products, I strongly encourage you to go after it. An exciting career and lifestyle awaits. 

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