Let Death Beget Life

Let Death
Beget Life

Death care—what happens to our bodies after death—in North America is dominated by options with negative environmental impacts.

Embalming, traditional burials in concrete vaults, and cremation are polluting and energy-intensive.

What if there was an alternative?

Green or environmentally friendly death care practices minimize environmental harm while supporting conservation and ecological sustainability efforts. They serve as an opportunity to, even in death, continue to benefit others and the planet for generations to come - to let death beget life. However, it is important to recognize that green death care is not the right choice for everyone. For personal, cultural, or accessibility reasons, traditional death care options may be more suitable for you. If that is the case, we still encourage you to learn and reflect on your death care intentions.

Why reflect on my death care choices?

Death can be a heavy and emotionally-charged topic, so much so that we often avoid talking or even thinking about it. However, in putting off reflecting about our own end-of-life choices and discussing them with our loved ones, we lose the ability to dictate our final moments on our terms. Having even a general idea about the physical, emotional, spiritual, and financial aspects of our death can be essential to empowering our loved ones to carry out our wishes and advocate on our behalf after we’re gone. Reflecting on our end-of-life choices doesn’t have to be a heavily involved process. Sometimes it can be as simple as thinking about what is important to us, how we can open a conversation, and which deathcare options interest you. We’ve created a set of tools to help you do just that. Our Post-Life Postcard maker allows you to reflect and share your end-of-life intentions in a low-pressure manner. Need help understanding the deathcare choices available? Our Guided Explorer will enable you to learn about and find similar options to those you may already be familiar with. Death can be a daunting subject, but it doesn’t have to be. Let’s start the conversation together.

Reflect by making

a post-life postcard:

Learn more about different

deathcare options:

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Conservation Burial / Land Legacy

Donating Body
to Science

Which option would you like to learn more about?

Conservation Burial / Land Legacy

Donating Body
to Science

Conservation Burial / Land Legacy

Donating Body
to Science

Conventional Burial

Conventional burial refers to the practice of laying a body to rest in the ground. This often involves embalming the body, replacing bodily fluids with preservatives such as formaldehyde, to delay the natural process of decomposition.¹ Following embalmment, the body is then placed inside a non-biodegradable casket and lowered into a concrete lined vault.¹ This typically occurs at a traditional cemetery where a marker or gravestone is set over the grave after the burial.¹

While conventional burial is a popular option and may be heavily rooted in tradition, it is important to acknowledge its negative environmental and human health consequences. From the carcinogenic nature of embalming products² to the carbon emissions associated with the production of steel and concrete,³ traditional burial comes with many adverse side effects. By attempting to interfere with the natural cycle of life and death, preserving a body for as long as possible, we not only delay the inevitable, but harm the environment in the process.

British Columbia Funeral Association. Guide on Death and Dying. June 2024. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://www.bcfunerals.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/ 06/BCFA-Guide-On-Death-and-Dying-2024.pdf.
Franco, Dison SP, Jordana Georgin, Luis Angel Villarreal Campo, et al. "The Environmental Pollution Caused by Cemeteries and Cremations: A Review." Chemosphere 307 (November 2022): 136025. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.136025.
Webster, Lee. "The Case for Green Burial." Green Burial Council. Last modified 2015. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://www.greenburialcouncil.org/uploads/1/2/ 4/2/124231485/the_case_for_green_burials.pdf.

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Cremation

Cremation is the process of reducing human remains into ashes by incinerating a casket containing the body in a closed chamber.¹ Typically, cremation is only the first step in an end-of-life plan, where there are numerous options for ash disposition.¹ According to the Cremation Association of North America, as of 2024, over 60% of Americans and over 75% of Canadians chose cremation as their preferred deathcare option - a number that is only predicted to rise.²

Although popular, cremation poses many significant environmental risks. Not only is the cremation process typically fueled by gas, producing carbon emissions,³ but other emissions are also produced due to the nature of the body and casket being cremated. For example, the cremation process volatilizes mercury present in dental fillings contributing to an estimated 6% of all annual mercury emissions in Canada.³

British Columbia Funeral Association. Guide on Death and Dying. June 2024. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://www.bcfunerals.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/ 06/BCFA-Guide-On-Death-and-Dying-2024.pdf.
Cremation Association of North America. "Industry Statistical Information." Cremation Association of North America. Last modified 2025. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://www.cremationassociation.org/industrystatistics.html
O'Keeffe, Juliette. Field Inquiry: Crematoria Emissions and Air Quality Impacts. March 2020. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://ncceh.ca/sites/default/files/FINAL_Field%20Inquiry-Crematoria%20emissions%20and%20air%20quality%20impacts_EN_0.pdf..

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Ash Dispersion

Ash dispersion is the act of scattering cremated or aquamated remains.¹ This can either be at a dedicated memorial site (such as a traditional cemetery with a plaque or marker) or in a meaningful natural setting.¹ In Canada, you can scatter remains on any Crown land (national parks, provincial parks, etc.) or on private property with the owner’s written permission.² However, guidelines may vary widely from province to province and even at different locations within a province, so be sure to research your desired ash scattering location ahead of time.

Ash dispersion on its own does not have a significant environmental impact. Instead, its environmental impact comes from how the ashes are attained. Choosing a sustainable option like aquamation allows for all of the significance of spreading your loved ones’ ashes while avoiding the environmental harms associated with cremation.

British Columbia Funeral Association. Guide on Death and Dying. June 2024. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://www.bcfunerals.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/ 06/BCFA-Guide-On-Death-and-Dying-2024.pdf.
Brazeau, David. "The BAO answers your most frequently asked questions." Beyond: The Bereavement Authority of Ontario magazine, November 2024, 10-13. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://thebao.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/BAO_Beyond_Issue11_November2024.pdf.

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Ash Conversion

Ash conversion involves turning a loved one’s cremated or aquamated remains into keepsake jewellery. There are a wide range of options, but may include pendants, bracelets, rings, or even handmade diamonds.¹ Ash conversion tends to be a good option for those looking for a personal, tangible memorial to their loved ones or for those with limited scattering options. Typically only a small amount of ashes are used to craft each item, allowing for remains to be distributed amongst multiple people.²

Like many other forms of post-cremation / post-aquamation options, ash conversion has no significant environmental impact on its own aside from the energy used to create the base material of the jewellery. Choosing aquamation over cremation to attain the ashes allows you to still create meaningful keepsake jewellery while reducing your environmental footprint.

British Columbia Funeral Association. Guide on Death and Dying. June 2024. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://www.bcfunerals.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/ 06/BCFA-Guide-On-Death-and-Dying-2024.pdf.
McGee, Andrew. "Cremated remains, 'cremains', and ash scattering." Canadian Funerals Online. Last modified January 25, 2022. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://canadianfunerals.com/what-to-do-with-cremated-remains/.

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Natural Ground Burial

Natural ground burial or green burial is the practice of laying remains to rest in the ground while minimizing environmental impact.¹ Natural ground burial involves no embalmment or preservation.¹ Instead, the deceased is placed in a biodegradable casket or shroud to allow for the natural decomposition of the body.¹ It is important to note that concerns over animal access to bodies are mitigated by proper burial depth practices and odour control, so the body is still respected throughout the process.²

There are many environmental benefits to choosing natural ground burial over traditional burial. From avoiding the runoff of embalming chemicals to reducing carbon emissions associated with the production of traditional burial materials (caskets, vault liners, etc.)², green burial provides a sustainable burial alternative. Moreover, many green burial sites will also avoid pesticide use, regular grass cutting, and landscaping to naturalize the surrounding area - further adding to its ecological benefits.¹

Johnson, Dana N., Jo Fitzgibbons, Lea Anderson, Don Carruthers Den Hoed, and Kai M. A. Chan. Opportunities to recognize and expand burial and other legacy lands as conservation areas. March 31, 2023. Accessed July 1, 2025.
O'Keeffe, Juliette. Alternative disposition services: Green burial, alkaline hydrolysis and human composting. April 2023. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://ncceh.ca/sites/default/files/2023-04/Alternative%20Disposition%20Services_EN_Apr%202023_FINAL.pdf.

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Aquamation

Aquamation or alkaline hydrolysis is an environmentally-friendly cremation alternative that also produces an ash-like substance.¹ By heating a vessel mixed with water and a highly alkaline solution, the remains are dissolved into a liquid form.¹ Bone fragments from the vessel are then recovered and crushed to produce powdered remains similarly to cremation.² These remains can be used in any post-cremation option (dispersion, conversion, or burial) in an identical manner to cremated remains.

Aquamation offers many significant environmental benefits over cremation. First, the process of aquamation avoids the direct carbon and heavy metal emissions associated with the combustion process.² No particulate matter is released into the air and mercury fillings from dental implants are simply recovered after the aquamation process.² While aquamation does require energy to perform, it is estimated to take a roughly one seventh of the energy used by flame cremation.²

Stall-Paquet, Caitlin. "A look at aquamation — cremation by water instead of fire — in Canada." Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). Last modified September 27, 2022. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://www.cbc.ca/life/culture/a-look-at-aquamation-cremation-by-water-instead-of-fire-in-canada-1.6576172.
O'Keeffe, Juliette. Alternative disposition services: Green burial, alkaline hydrolysis and human composting. April 2023. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://ncceh.ca/sites/default/files/2023-04/Alternative%20Disposition%20Services_EN_Apr%202023_FINAL.pdf.

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Conservation Burial / Land Legacy

Conservation burial reserves and conservation legacy reserves are closely related deathcare options that help promote ecological function by protecting land as dedicated conservation areas.¹ These options take a portion of funeral costs and direct donations to fund conservation efforts, often aimed at improving or maintaining biodiversity.¹ Given that the median cost of a traditional funeral in the U.S. was nearly 10,000 dollars in 2023,² 3,300 of which are dedicated to embalming and a non-biodegradable casket,² conservational burial / legacy reserves present an excellent opportunity to protect nature at no increased cost to the consumer.

There are many environmental benefits associated with conservation burial reserves and land legacies. Biodiversity is critical for many ecosystem services we rely on regularly. From the dependence of agriculture on crop species diversity to pollination and even human disease regulation,³ it is in all of our interests to maintain global biodiversity and choosing a conservation burial or legacy reserve is a compelling, cost-effective way to do so.

Johnson, Dana N., Jo Fitzgibbons, Lea Anderson, Don Carruthers Den Hoed, and Kai M. A. Chan. Opportunities to recognize and expand burial and other legacy lands as conservation areas.
National Funeral Directors Association. 2023 NFDA General Price List Study. December 8, 2023. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://nfda.org/Portals/0/12-8-2023--2023%20GPL%20Survey.pdf.
Langhammer, Penny F., Joseph W. Bull, Jake E. Bicknell, et al. "The Positive Impact of Conservation Action." Science 384, no. 6694 (2024): 453-58. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adj6598.

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Home Burial

Home burials are burials that occur on privately-owned land rather than at a designated funeral home. Burying a loved one at home can be an emotionally powerful and more cost effective alternative to a traditional burial, but there are many important details to keep in mind to ensure safety and legality. Depending on your location, the process for a home burial may involve a significant amount of paperwork, which could be incredibly taxing while mourning the loss of a loved one. For example, in British Columbia, it is illegal to bury a body anywhere except a private cemetery so those wishing to perform a home burial must have their property established as a place of interment.¹ This involves being approved for a certificate of public interest, getting, and regularly renewing a cemetery operator’s license.¹

Home burials vary in their environmental impact. Because most people don’t have access to embalming materials or concrete vault liners, oftentimes home burials are more sustainable than traditional burial options.

Consumer Protection BC. "Can I be buried on the family farm?" Consumer Protection BC. Last modified June 2024. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://www.consumerprotectionbc.ca/2024/06/can-i-be-buried-on-the-family-farm-2/.

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Mushroom Burial Suit

Mushroom burial suits are a form of green burial where rather than using a biodegradable casket, the body is wrapped in a natural fabric embedded with fungal spores. Proponents of mushroom burial suits claim that the use of mushrooms help to further break down the body while cleaning any associated environmental toxins through mycoremediation.¹ However, the extent of these claims has not yet been meaningfully tested in the scientific literature.²

Given the untested nature of these claims, at present, mushroom burial suits are equally as beneficial to the environment as a typical green / natural ground burial. The avoidance of embalming chemicals and carbon-intensive materials are positives,² but the use of a mushroom-laden shroud remains more of a personal decision rather than an environmental one.

Lee, Jae Rhim. "How the Mushroom Death Suit Will Change the Way We Die." Medium. Last modified April 13, 2016. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://fellowsblog.ted.com/how-the-mushroom-death-suit-will-change-the-way-we-die-a52f486dc816.
O'Keeffe, Juliette. Alternative disposition services: Green burial, alkaline hydrolysis and human composting. April 2023. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://ncceh.ca/sites/default/files/2023-04/Alternative%20Disposition%20Services_EN_Apr%202023_FINAL.pdf.

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Body Composting

Body composting refers to the careful decomposition of human remains into a soil-like material. This often involves placing the body in a specialized vessel which is then turned, aerated, and heated over the course of a month to decompose the body in a safe manner.¹ The resulting soil-like substance is then combed for inorganic materials like implants, and then either returned to loved ones or deposited at a designated site to be used as topsoil.¹ By using composted remains as part of the soil base, families can create meaningful living memorials to their loved ones.

There are many environmental benefits to body composting. For one, it avoids the use of embalming chemicals and the emissions associated with creating burial items like coffins and headstones.¹ Body composting also requires less energy than cremation and releases no direct combustion emissions into the air.¹

O'Keeffe, Juliette. Alternative disposition services: Green burial, alkaline hydrolysis and human composting. April 2023. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://ncceh.ca/sites/default/files/2023-04/Alternative%20Disposition%20Services_EN_Apr%202023_FINAL.pdf.

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Donating Body
to Science

Donating your body to science is the process of providing your remains to a medical training institution to give future healthcare professionals hands-on experience working with human specimens.¹ This is widely considered a critical experiential component of healthcare education and bodies are used for a few years before being cremated and returned to the next of kin.¹

Donating one’s body to science can be an incredibly meaningful way to give back to the next generation of healthcare workers. Moreover, many universities will provide the final cremation free of charge, making it a very affordable option.¹ However, it is important to note that because of the final cremation, this option involves many of the same negative environmental impacts. Because donation programs are standardized through educational institutions, there is also often very little flexibility to change cremation to a more eco-friendly alternative.

UBC Medicine. "Body Donation Program." University of British Columbia. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://cps.med.ubc.ca/body-donation-program/.

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Contained Ash Burial

Contained ash burial refers to the burial of cremated remains in a traditional burial plot, often in an urn or other vessel.¹ This option offers the flexibility of upholding burial traditions, such as being laid to rest near other family members in a cemetery, while also allowing some ashes to be dispersed or converted.¹

Contained ash burial can have significant negative environmental impacts due to its use of both cremation and traditional burial practices. While it is possible to minimize the environmental impact of contained ash burial through the choice of aquamation and green burial, the green burial of ashes is not as widespread. This is due to the chemical composition of cremated remains which includes high levels of calcium, phosphate, and sodium.² Plants may actively avoid the ash-containing soil in favor of more chemically balanced soil,² which runs counter to many of the goals of green burial sites.

British Columbia Funeral Association. Guide on Death and Dying. June 2024. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://www.bcfunerals.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/ 06/BCFA-Guide-On-Death-and-Dying-2024.pdf.
Carolina Memorial Sanctuary. "Green Burial of Cremated Remains." Carolina Memorial Sanctuary. Last modified March 29, 2023. Accessed July 1, 2025. https://carolinamemorialsanctuary.org/cremated-remains-options-green-burial-scattering/.