The Timber Inclusion Roundtables are virtual events with a regional focus. They bring together First Nations and allied professionals to explore the question, “how can we build houses with our own trees?”
All roundtables will be held online from 9:00am – 11:30am.
Upcoming dates are below:
- March 5th – Coastal & Vancouver Island
- March 10th – Central & North
- March 12th – Interior & Southeast
- March 24th – Housing Manager Specific with FNHIC (Provincial)
Space is limited to 20 participants per event.
Register Now
About the Sessions
The 2.5 hour online and interactive roundtables explore challenges and practical solutions. The focus is on the lumber supply chain from forest management through harvest, milling, grading, and construction for both on-reserve and off-reserve buildings. Special attention is given to scale and capacity building: from small batch finishing materials to whole home construction.
Participants will gain knowledge, share ideas, and identify options to include locally sourced wood products in their construction projects. The roundtables will provide preliminary planning tools and resources that support Nations to develop timber inclusion strategies.
The session will review types of wood products and requirements, practical considerations at each stage (from forest to final install), scale of operations, and economic and workforce development planning.
These roundtables are a combination of knowledge sharing and collaborative discussions on key topics. They are open to builders, band administrators, housing managers, economic development teams, forestry professionals, land management teams, and others interested in construction homes from locally sourced timber.
The format will be interactive and includes the following:
- Review of Current Conditions: Planning Considerations from Forest to Final Build
- Grounding Ideas in Reality: Scenario Review
- Breakout groups: Interactive and Collaborative Exploration of Key Topics
About the Initiative
The Roundtables are part of the Indigenous Construction Standards (ICS) initiative. Emerging out of the work of Nuxalk Hereditary Chief Smawn (Richard Hall), the ICS Initiative provides resources, curriculum, and capacity building opportunities that empower communities to set their own construction standards and administer multi-faceted housing programs.