Managing tens of thousands of acres of forest and cropland worldwide — but especially in the Southeastern U.S. — forestry has been a family tradition for the Taylors for more than 100 years. During the 16 years Taylor represented Western North Carolina’s 11th District in the U.S. Congress, he was the only licensed forester in Congress. 

He has been a proponent for conservation, with the family giving the Conservation Fund of America thousands of acres of land in Transylvania and Haywood counties through a bargain sale, to be managed as multiple-use state forestland. Taylor is an advocate of timber use as a sustainable building material. 

“As the world’s population increases, we must continue to use our best science to rely on renewable resources as we conserve our finite resources,” he said.