Nordic Houses: good thoughts lead to valuable actions!
Nordic Houses as a responsible company has over the years initiated and participated in various charity projects that support the cause of bringing people closer to nature. It has often been successful through different activities that have taken part in nature. That way one’ s mind gets re-charged with new energy and environment benefits as well.
When the new school year was just about to start in the fall of 2017, Argo Saul, leader of Nordic Houses, got an idea – let’s create a project that unites woodwork, young people and local wood companies. Nordic Houses turned to the Wooden Houses Association with an idea to together with other sector companies create a pilot project “From Young Masters to Nature”. The idea of the project was to popularize carpenter’s profession and developing young students’ handywork skills. Better co-operation between schools and local companies also helps young people to realize that carpentry is an exciting and strongly developing line of work that can be studied further. Through the project we create a valuable starting ground for young people to enter the industry of wooden houses production sector.
Estonian middle schools and high schools were invited to join the project to provide young people an opportunity during their studies to create something valuable for their community. Students will start making wooden outside trash cans in their woodshop class at school. Every school can be creative about the outcome, considering the functionality of the product and how it would fit into the environment where it is going to be located. There will be co-operation between schools and wood companies in the area during the project. There are 12 companies participating who will also provide schools with necessary materials and accessories. Project members also include the Society of Estonian Handywork Teachers and by now 16 schools across Estonia have joined the project. Students will make 29 trash cans by spring.
Photo: Nordic Houses
Project coordinator Thea Perm hopes that schools will create a connection with partnering companies in order to make something together also in future or to create opportunities of summer jobs for students.
Nordic Houses, along with Managing Director Argo Saul follow the principles of doing together and responsible entrepreneurship in their activities. “We see in our activities that together we are stronger. A good example of this is Estonian Wooden Houses Association, where supporting each other has led Estonia to becoming Europe’s biggest exporter of wooden houses.” As a producer of wooden houses the company believes in wood and values wood as a construction material – it’s strong, renewable, binds carbon dioxide and enables to create warm, modern and healthy living environment. “Nordic Houses has by itself and together with Wooden Houses Association implemented projects over the years where wood has been a topic and where we have been able to unite people with nature and support education,” adds Saul.
The idea to make woodwork with young people got its start already in August 2017 at the Conference of Friends of Wooden Houses on Prangli island. Local people said that they would need trash cans for public use on the island. The idea was immediately grabbed upon by young Nordic Houses engineers Sigrit Link and Indrek Soots who made a creative, competitive task out of it. Participants of the conference made wooden trash cans as teamwork. The outcome was very interesting as well as creative and the cans found suitable places on the island. The problem that tourists didn’t have a place where to throw trash found a solution and people of the island promised to take good care of the trash cans.
It will definitely not be the last environment related charity project by Nordic Houses, there is always willingness to implement new ideas and face new challenges. Earlier projects of Nordic Houses include building bird houses in co-operation with kindergartens and bird friends, dog houses for an animal shelter, outdoor study pavillion for Kuusalu kindergarten, bird watching tower in Lahemaa and every year in co-operation with RMK and Chamber of Goodwill thousands of trees are being planted. Because of those projects the objective of bringing people closer to nature has been a success.
More information about the school project can be found in Facebook page “Noortelt meistritelt loodusele” and at: puitmajaliit.ee
Nordic Houses 2018