Professor Tom Hammett was invited to give a university-wide seminar at Auburn University in January 2018. His talk, entitled “Exploring experiential learning in training natural resource professionals: Challenges and opportunities,” outlined his efforts to incorporate practical examples and real-life cases in his courses, both on campus and through study abroad. Students participating in hands-on or experiential learning gain not only technical skills but have opportunities to practice and acquire confidence in using these skills. In these classes, students are exposed to a variety of types organizations — government, non-government, or for-profit —helping students to contrast different management styles, working environments, and organizational priorities. Hammett was invited to Auburn by Brian Via, director of the Forest Products Center at Auburn and a former student of Hammett’s. Brian was a perfect host, facilitating the seminar, arranging visits with faculty and administration to discuss academic affairs, and putting together meetings with potential collaborators to discuss research in cross-laminated timbers. Professor Via has been instrumental in putting together a sustainable biomaterials and packaging curriculum at Auburn modeled, in part, after the program at Virginia Tech.