Wood is, by far one of the most sustainable building materials that has been used since the onset of building construction. Today, there are so many commercially made products which are ruining the environment and directly or indirectly, creating more problems than solutions for the inhabitants and surroundings.
Use of wood for building industry is also strongly supported by the US Forest Service.
The Forest Service would like to stress that to enhance the environment, life cycle analysis have to be promoted in building codes and standards. Read more here


When we talk of sustainable building project, what constitutes sustainability?
There are some fundamental thumb rules to sustainable building: siting and structural design, energy efficiency, material efficiency, indoor environmental quality; operations and maintenance; and waste reduction. Sustainable practices and technologies are constantly evolving and may differ from region to region and so it is difficult to standardise that.
 A great article in the Architectural Record on material efficiency and what the relevance of wood is to sustainable design in the context of environmental, social and economic factors. Read more here

The toughest thing for any parent to endure is seeing their child being ill. And if it is a prolonged illness with very long stays in the hospital, this can add excess stress over the already exhausted family. The drab walls, uncomfortable chairs and cold corridors provide little comfort to the sick child or their families. But a lot is changing now with many hospitals transforming their facilities to accommodate the needs of the families with more private rooms, comfortable sofa-beds and noise reduction  through a voluntary but very influential non profit organisation called Families Guidelines Institute that helps federal agencies regulate the design and construction of health care buildings. Read more here