In Copenhagen, design tells the story of wood, from the forest to the finished project

A century ago, the deciduous forests of the eastern United States had been reduced to stumps and ashes. Devastated by decades of intensive exploitation, they had lost their biodiversity, extent and value. Then, around 120 years ago, a profound shift in attitudes and policies turned the tide. Today, those same forests cover over 40 million acres and are growing at a faster rate than they are being used: the United States’ deciduous forest cover has more than doubled compared to fifty years ago. It is from this story of regeneration that the narrative of Wood for the Trees began, the exhibition that Ahec brought to Copenhagen for three days of design (3daysofdesign), from 10 to 12 June 2026.

The international design world, on the occasion of the Danish exhibition and as part of the group show Material Matters, hosted in the historic waterside building at Gammel Dok in the Christianshavn district, has thus turned its attention to the raw materials behind finishes, coverings and furnishings: its origin, its supply chain and the impact that every choice made by consumers and designers has on it. The installation, created by the London-based studio Mitre & Mondays with the masterful craftsmanship of Benchmark, transformed the space into a forest. An immersive environment inspired by the Ahec documentary ‘Forested Future’, which explores the relationship between human communities and forests through the stories of the people who depend on them. A series of rotating logs served as display stands, seating reminiscent of fallen branches invited visitors to linger, and suspended graphic elements recreated the canopy of a forest. The timber, donated by family-run sawmills, featured four key species: American red oak, yellow birch, hard maple and cherry. Each with its own grain, colour and story. The exhibition was divided into five stages (growth, planning, selection, resilience, wood), which guided visitors from forest ecology to the grain of a single piece of wood, illustrating how responsible forest management is essential for ensuring that this material will still exist a hundred years from now.

David Venables, director of Ahec Europe – one of the leading voices on the relationship between design and material responsibility – explained the overall purpose of the initiative. “We are convinced,” he explains, “that showing the material alongside the forest from which it comes is essential to raising consumer awareness not only of a product’s physical characteristics, but also of the deeper meaning behind the choice that has been made.” The risk Venables highlights is clear: that design culture is losing its connection with the origin of the resources it uses. “Wood is nature’s gift to the world of materials,” he observes. Trees exist to live on this planet, and the material they generate, if treated intelligently, is a gift that renews itself. The problem is that architects and designers all too often regard it as just another industrial product, forgetting the link to the forest of origin.”

For Venables, the solution lies first and foremost in education. “Every university course in architecture and design should include a compulsory module on wood and forests,” he says. “Wood will become an increasingly central component of contemporary architecture: we are still learning; we are at the dawn of a new construction technology, and that is precisely why now is the right time to build a solid culture around this material.” This stance has a direct impact on demand: if designers do not know the different types of wood, they cannot make the right choices, and if they cannot make the right choices, they cannot steer the supply chain towards responsible forest management.

The initiative promoted by AHEC in the Danish capital is also directly linked to the traceability of the timber. To meet the new demands for supply chain transparency, the association has developed American Hardwood Assured, a programme that integrates satellite data, geospatial analysis and artificial intelligence to document the origin of the timber and assess the risk of it coming from areas affected by deforestation. “The limitation of current certifications,” continues Venables, “is that they guarantee a process, not a precise geographical origin.” Through this system, AHEC aims to offer designers, companies and consumers more detailed information on the origin of the material, in line with the requirements of the new European regulatory framework. In particular, the Deforestation Regulation, known as the EUDR (EU Regulation 2023/1115), requires companies placing products such as timber and timber products on the European market to demonstrate that these do not originate from land deforested after 2020, with the obligation to provide geolocation data for production sites to ensure supply chains are transparent and traceable. Following two successive postponements, implementation is now set for 30 December 2026 for large and medium-sized enterprises trading in timber and timber products, whilst for micro and small enterprises the deadline is 30 June 2027. A near-term deadline that transforms traceability from a virtuous option into a legal obligation, and which makes the satellite- and blockchain-based system presented by AHEC in Copenhagen not merely a cultural proposal, but a tool with a specific operational utility for the entire supply chain.