Staff Spotlight: Evan Schmidt
Evan works on our wood markets team, recruiting more builders to use sustainable, local wood products that support healthy forests and wildlife habitat, vibrant local economies, and thriving communities that produce wood products.
“The ethos of the work is so fundamentally collaborative. How do we find common ground that benefits all of us and really work for that? There is an amazing spirit in that approach.”
How did your childhood influence your decision to work in sustainability?
I grew up spending a lot of time outdoors on the fringe of suburbia and the hinterlands, and my childhood, it was back in the day when there was no internet or smartphones, and my parents were pretty laissez-faire, so I spent a lot of time building terrariums and picking up bugs and throwing stones.
We also had a lot of pets growing up. My dad bred birds, fish, and a few snakes. Our entire garage was fish tanks, and we built a big aviary together. So I grew up really loving plants and animals and nature. When I got into backpacking, that became the most foundational joy of my life and where I spend the most quality time with friends and loved ones. For me nature is this foundation of meaning, both in my relationships and personal life.
How did your educational and career path lead you to Sustainable Northwest?
I was always fascinated with place as a concept, whether indoor or outdoor. And with the built environment, I’m particularly interested in where the built environment meets the natural world. I used to joke that I studied architecture because I always hated being inside buildings so much. I want them to feel more like being in nature. That led me to become interested in the materials side of architecture and to volunteer to build natural buildings and learn about traditional modes of building. Eventually, I earned my master’s degree in wood science. I went to work for the Tallwood Design Institute for six years – a collaboration between Oregon State University’s forestry school and the University of Oregon’s architecture school. The forestry topics and use of mass timber became increasingly interesting to me. This whole forest-to-frame movement is about the forest. I feel like that is the cornerstone of the value proposition of mass timber. Working at Tallwood connected me to Sustainable Northwest, and this position working in the wood markets program felt like a fitting next step that helps me dig even deeper into the connections between the forest and the built environment.
What do you like most about your position at Sustainable Northwest?
I am impressed with the range of knowledge and expertise. It’s inspiring to see everyone else engage in their own deep work, and in that vein, what I find fascinating is how much latitude there is to get out there and engage and connect the dots and be creative – with a north star, yes, but to be creative in meeting our goals, objectives, and desired impacts. It is incredibly dynamic to sit in this space between so many different types of people and organizations and try to figure out effectively how to connect the dots. The ethos of the work is so fundamentally collaborative. How do we find common ground that benefits all of us and really work for that? There is an amazing spirit in that approach.
Passions outside of work: Guitar. Backpacking. Camping. And designing and building things – most recently was a beer garden in Corvallis that I designed and built with a friend using reclaimed wood products, including offcuts from the portland airport roof.
Something you think is overrated: Granite and marble countertops
Favorite thing to do on a day off: Gardening, especially with a few grapefruit-juice spiked beers. Catching up on house projects and chores, dealing with accumulated things.
Favorite place in the PNW: Summer Lake Hot Springs
Book recommendation: The Book of the New Sun series by Gene Wolfe
Cats or dogs?: Dogs
