Woodworking and Sustainability

An Environmental Studies capstone class centered around climate urgency taught by Professor Giovanna Di Chiro has a group of 5 students who have chosen to focus on sustainable woodworking. Using the MakerSpace and Engineering lab, students Kyle Richmond-Crosset, Ethan Chapman, Tessa Hannigan, Alicia Lopez-Torres and Eriko Shrestha, have been using reclaimed and found wood to create a variety of handmade items. Some of the projects they have been working on are cutting coasters from logs, whittling spoons and slabbing out Mancala boards. These handmade items give them the opportunity to practice re-skilling while relinquishing the idea of perfection in industrial products. One of the larger endeavors is a passive solar kiln for drying lumber. The solar kiln is a means to practice basic construction techniques, soft skills like communication and team building, but will also give back to the community as a resource students can continue to use once this group graduates. Working with MakerSpace manager Russell Prigodich and with funding from the Lang Center for Civic and Social Responsibility the students have already made a lot of progress.

Setting joists for solar kiln
Floor joists
Floor joists
Framing walls for the solar kiln
Cutting log into disks for coasters.
Cutting log into disks for coasters
Laser engraved coaster
Laser engraved coaster
Laser engraved coaster
Laser engraved coaster
Whittled spoon
Whittled spoon
Jointed, planed and routed Mancala board
Jointed, planed and routed Mancala board
Whittled spoon
Whittled spoon
Laser engraved sign
Laser engraved sign