About TFF

Who We Are: The Voice for American Hardwoods

TFF: Promoting Sustainable Forestry Management and the Use of American Hardwood Products

TFF develops modern educational campaigns and outreach programs using innovative digital tools to reach into U.S. and international markets to drive demand for sustainably managed, legally harvested timber and hardwood products. TFF believes that conveying the true nature of timber and hardwoods as sustainable, green products is essential to influencing buying trends worldwide.

All TFF programs and efforts are intended to broaden the impact on – and outreach into – U.S. and international markets by encouraging national and worldwide demand for American hardwood products.

Additionally, TFF works to protect American forests and the lives – plant, animal, and human alike – affected by and reliant on this powerful natural resource. TFF provides informational and educational resources to the public and promotes companies and industries that share TFF’s goal of responsible and sustainable forestry protection and management.

TFF is based in Dayton, Ohio, and its members are located all over the world.

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A Nonprofit that Produces Content for the Hardwoods Industry

The Timber & Forestry Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit conservation and education organization. As such, we are capable of partnering with organizations and companies to develop educational and promotional video content that benefits the industry and our members.

TFF serves hardwood, softwood, and lumber companies and organizations by developing educational videos and campaigns that promote sustainability and the health benefits of specifying timber and hardwood of all kinds, highlighting responsible forest management.

TFF videos range in length from short (2-5 minutes) to long form (10-25 minutes) and are professionally produced by award-winning digital media experts. Organizations and companies are able to sponsor videos with their logos and names appearing in the credits and their products and services as the focus of video content.

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TFF’s Purpose and Goals

The Timber & Forestry Foundation (TFF) is an educational platform that promotes the inherent sustainability, carbon sequestration benefits, and beauty of American and legally harvested timber and hardwoods. We believe that with promotional efforts, advocacy campaigns, and educational programs, these widely varied species of timber and hardwoods can thrive like never before.

As the world moves together toward the goal of carbon neutrality, TFF develops modern educational campaigns and outreach programs using innovative digital tools to reach into U.S. and international markets to drive demand for sustainably managed, legally harvested timber and hardwood products. TFF believes that conveying the true nature of timber and hardwoods as sustainable, renewable, green products is essential to influencing buying trends worldwide.

TFF has three primary goals:

  • To educate and inform the general public on the sustainable practices of current North American forestry management and dispel the unfounded, yet unfortunately widespread belief that cutting down trees is a negative practice associated with deforestation and harming the planet.
  • To influence design trends and promote the use of hardwood materials for interior spaces by reaching interior designers, architects, home and business owners, home-trend publishers, and the general press.
  • To promote the usage of the abundant, natural, green resource that is American Hardwood and other sustainability managed, legally harvested hardwood, and to promote US and Canadian forestry management practices as a model for the world. These efforts will help with North American job creation, export growth, expansion of proper forestry management practices, etc.

The sustainable American timber story, backed
by peer reviewed scientific data,
is a great story, one we are proud to tell.

Why TFF?

TFF brings together domestic and international hardwood experts, industry stakeholders, public relations specialists, and digital media professionals to develop and launch powerful and effective campaign strategies that educate, inspire and influence producers, consumers, and public entities.

TFF strives to encourage and communicate the timber and hardwoods industry’s role in the reduction of greenhouse gasses through the natural carbon sequestration of trees. Specifying hardwoods in biophilic design advances the health and well-being of humans and creates economic and environmental prosperity for people and communities around the world.

TFF has identified the need for promotion of our industry and leads the effort to move this initiative forward. Over the past five years, we have developed the platform for the Timber & Forestry Foundation, including the logo and branding, messaging strategy, content, the website, and multiple videos. With your help, we can do so much more.

The TFF Sustainability Commitment

We are committed to protecting the world’s forests, building public trust in legally harvested timber and hardwood, and advancing the sustainable management of timberland as an environmentally beneficial resource to build a healthy and thriving future for our families, our communities, and our planet.

Board of Directors

Dane Coleman
President, Communications Director
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Zack Ruef
Creative Director, Treasurer
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James Davis
Vice President, Secretary
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Founded by Industry Experts

The Timber & Forestry Foundation was co-founded by Criswell Davis, internationally recognized American hardwood expert, speaker, and hardwood specification consultant. Criswell passed away in late 2022, but TFF carries on his mission of inspiring the use of sustainability American hardwoods in design.

Criswell was in the American hardwood industry for over three decades, representing the American Hardwood Export Council internationally. Criswell was a passionate ambassador for the American hardwood industry. He believed that designing with American hardwoods improves our personal health and the health of the planet. He was a recognized TEDx 2019 speaker on the topic of American hardwoods in biophilic design.

Criswell was our friend, our mentor, and our inspiration.

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