SAMI YASSA is a senior scientist and director of NRDC's forest initiative. He is an expert on forest ecology and management and efficient wood use in residential construction. Sami authored Efficient Wood Use in Residential Construction, a technical handbook for building professionals, and has written numerous NRDC reports on forest management. He has served on national committees relating to forest management, including the Interagency Technical Committee for the California Spotted Owl and the Keystone Center's National Ecosystem Management Forum. He also serves as a lecturer in environmental science and policy at the Universities of California at Berkeley and Davis and as an Instructor at College of Marin. Sami holds a master's degree in energy and resources from the University of California at Berkeley and a bachelor's degree in physics from Colby College. Press contact: cnoble@nrdc.org, 415-875-6100 If you are not a member of the press, please write to us at nrdcinfo@nrdc.org.