ProPopulus Team
Wood is a renewable, sustainable, and inexhaustible resource if forest masses are properly managed, replanting those trees that are harvested and preventing pests and fires. Its utilities are enormous and can be applied to sectors such as the textile industry, construction, shipbuilding, the automotive industry, or the pharmaceutical industry.
In the context of strategies that promote sustainable, intelligent, and inclusive economic growth, wood is the raw material par excellence since it meets all the requirements to generate this type of growth.
In fact, beyond the boom that wood has experienced as a material for the construction of large buildings, thanks to innovation in the development of engineered wood, some experts point out that it is “the raw material of the future”. Among the most innovative uses is the manufacture of bioplastics and graphene.
Today, when reducing the production of plastics worldwide is a priority, a similar, but sustainable material, that can be made from wood fibre has been discovered, and it can be used, for example, in the automotive sector.
Treeconomics, an event that unites wood and the sustainable economy
With the aim of giving visibility to the contribution of wood in the development of a sustainable bioeconomy and in the mitigation of climate change, ProPopulus, the European association that represents producers, companies and organisations of the poplar chain, has organised the conference Treeconomics. Wood in a sustainable economy. This free event (limited places) is sponsored by ING and will take place on 22nd June 2022 in the CÓMO space in Madrid (C/ Pradillo 60).
In Spain, according to 2019 data from the Joint Research Center (JRC) -Common Research Center of the European Union-, the whole bioeconomy sector generated 1.44 million jobs and contributed an added value of 69,000 million euros to the country’s economy during that year. The forestry sector, for its part, during that period generated 189,500 jobs with an added value of 9,000 million euros.
Since then, the forestry sector has experienced significant growth and it is currently estimated that its turnover is 20,000 million euros and it generates 210,000 jobs, of which 130,000 correspond to the first and second transformation industry, and 80,000 to forest work.
A study carried out by Maderea, the Spanish platform for the promotion of wood, reveals that the national and international demand between 2020 and 2021 increased by 35.95%. This, according to some experts, indicates that the sector will have a growth margin of 50% in the next decade, especially.
The event Treeconomics. Wood in a sustainable economy will cover various aspects of the contribution of the forestry sector to the development of an economic model that helps preserve resources for future generations.
Professor Joris van Acker, Chairman of ProPopulus and Director of the Wood Technology Laboratory of the University of Ghent, will speak about why the poplar is the tree of the 21st century, while Ana Belén Noriega, Secretary-General of PEFC Spain will speak about sustainable forest management as key in the fight against climate change.
Juan Picos, Doctor in Forestry Engineering, Professor and Researcher at the University of Vigo, will offer his vision on innovation in the wood industry and Julen Pérez, architect and Senior Associate, Waugh Thistleton Architects Ltd., will present the novelties regarding the use of wood in the construction industry.
Two round tables will be held to address the social, economic, and environmental impact of forests in Spain and the role of trees in everyday life in areas such as interior design, furniture, fashion and urban planning.
The conference will be closed by Pedro Garnica, Former Chairman of ProPopulus and Chairman of the Garnica Group, and Carlos García Peredo, General Director of Structured Financing, ING Spain & Portugal.
Registration will be open until 21st June (limited places) at https://propopulus.eu/en/treeconomics/ where the event agenda can be downloaded.
More information at info@propopulus.eu