Naujienos
*Finland's new calling card at FAO - the finnish forestry room
Finland is proud to join the tradition of FAO member countries that have designed a meeting room at FAO headquarters that represents an important aspect of their national culture.
A number oforganizations in the Finnish forest sector have contributed to the design of a beautiful new meeting room that will serve the FAO Forestry Department. The meeting room, the Finnish Forestry Room, is an example of the elaborate and innovative use of northern hardwood birch.
The meeting room at the FAO headquarters is Finland's calling card in Rome. Both forests and wood as a material are integral parts of Finnish culture. The interior of the room presents contemporary, innovative wood craftsmanship.
The Finnish Prime Minister, Mr Matti Vanhanen, spoke in favour of the Finnish use of wood at the inauguration:
This room is a sign of the appreciation we in Finland have for FAO as such and for the work of the Forest Department of FAO. And it is also an example of the use of wood. My Government is trying to promote the sound use of wood as an environmental friendly - and pleasant - raw material. In our National Forest Programme we have a target to increase the value added by the wood-working industry. Although Finland is a country with much forest and a tradition regarding the use of wood it is possible to increase the use.
The Government together with the sector have carried out a huge wood
promotion campaign called "Time for Wood". In less than 10 years we managed
to double the use of wood per capita. Today it is 1 m3 per capita and year.
I think this is a world-record. We are currently starting two policy
programmes on this. The one directed particularly to develop the
wood-working industry and the other to increase the use of wood in
house-building in Finland. In both programmes networking between small- and
medium sized companies is an important part.
Director Hannu Valtanen, a Member of the board of the Finnish Forest
Association continued: "The room reflects contemporary Finland. Serene and
functional, it combines traditional materials with high technology and
competence Both forests and wood as a material are integral parts of Finnish
culture. The interior of the room presents contemporary, innovative wood
craftsmanship. One of the walls consists of spatial elements made of plywood
strips less than a millimetre thick: they serve as curtains and provide an
acoustic surface. Sunlight filters through the plywood curtaining."