Hans Carl von Carlowitz
Hans Carl von Carlowitz or Hannß Carl von Carlowitz (24 December 1645 – 3 March 1714), was a Saxon tax accountant and mining administrator. His book Sylvicultura oeconomica, oder haußwirthliche Nachricht und Naturmäßige Anweisung zur wilden Baum-Zucht (1713) was the first comprehensive treatise about forestry. He approached forestry from the fears of a shortage of wood needed for the mining industry. He coined the term Nachhaltigkeit, now translated as "sustainable" while referring to the use of forests and is considered to be the father of sustainable yield forestry.
Life[edit]
Von Carlowitz was born in Oberrabenstein close to Chemnitz, nowadays a suburb of Chemnitz. He was the son of Saxon forest master Georg Carl von Carlowitz. The Thirty Years' War had caused much trouble and the Rabenstein Castle was also damaged leading to the family moving to Altschönfels in 1652. Young von Carlowitz grew up in the estate of Arnsdorf. In 1659 he studied at the Lycei Halensis. Fiver years later he went to study law and public administration in Jena, learned foreign languages, travelled as part of the grand tour to France, Russia and Italy.[1][2]
In 1671 he joined his father who was involved in settling disputes on the border with Bohemia. In 1672 he became a chamberlain and again assisted his father. Elector Johann Georg II appointed him as a mining inspector in 1679. In 1711 he became Oberberghauptmann in charge of mining at the court of Kursachsen in Freiberg (Sachsen). Freiberg, which is located in the foothills of the Ore Mountains, was known for its silver mines. In this post, he was responsible, among other things, for the supply of timber to the mining industry, which employed about ten thousand miners at the time. He married Ursula Margaretha, daughter of Christoph Dietrich von Bose in 1675. They had five children. He died in Freiberg.[3]