The Green Burial Council recognizes the importance of working collaboratively with local communities and their governments to ensure safe, sustainable burial options for diverse populations. The burial industry, and the Green Burial Council specifically, relies on scientifically proven methods and rigorous industry standards to ensure that the services and products being offered protect both the environment and the client’s safety.  In the last year, there have been attempts to ban or otherwise delay the opening of cemeteries that practice green, natural, and/or conservation burial. In B ..read more

Minnesota adopted a two-year moratorium on new cemeteries offering green burials, beginning 7/1/23. A related study has been ordered of the environmental and health impacts of green burials. The Green Burial Council has released this statement about the moratorium: ​"The Green Burial Council supports and advocates for the legal creation and operation of green cemeteries for all faiths and secular communities across the United States. It also understands that in some instances local public opinion may be in opposition to any cemetery, green or otherwise, and it is important to garner local sup ..read more

Image source: Pexels When a loved one passes, it is certainly natural to go through a period of mourning. However, after attending to an eco-friendly burial, it’s worth considering how you can move forward in honoring the memory of your loved one who has passed. Many people are embracing a ‘celebration of life’ as an event that focuses on joyful memories rather than the pain of loss.  This isn’t about ignoring the difficult emotions surrounding death. Finding meaningful ways to celebrate life can boost your mental health during the grieving process. You get to spend time with others, shar ..read more

Image Source: Unsplash When the end of a loved one’s life approaches, difficult decisions must be made. From choosing the right palliative and hospice care teams to selecting a body disposition plan, your priority is to make your loved one feel at ease in their final days. However, end-of-life care, when not performed with sustainability in mind, can produce a large amount of medical waste, travel costs, and other harsh emissions. If you want your loved one to be remembered for their positive impact, there’s no better way to make their time on earth even more beautiful than by making eco-frien ..read more

Image Source: Unsplash Many people love their home so much that they choose to stay in that one place until death – or even after. The idea of a backyard burial is both old and new and can provide a cost saving alternative to a standard burial.  It’s also typically more eco-friendly than getting buried in a traditional cemetery.   However, being buried in your backyard or somewhere nearby isn’t always as easy as one may think. Even though it’s your property, some states and communities have laws in place that may prevent a backyard burial.     If you’re interested in a bac ..read more

Baldwin Hill Conservation Cemetery ​Conservation burial is the most environmentally stringent of the Green Burial Council’s burial ground standards. In addition to meeting all standards required of hybrid and natural burial grounds, conservation burial requires the following requirements: ​​Applying strategies to preserve, enhance, or restore native habitat and species Conserve or restore 20 acres, or 5 acres if there is surrounding protected lands Guarantee preservation of the burial ground by conservation easement that runs with the land and is enforceable in perpetuity.  Partner with ..read more

Prepared by the Green Burial Council's board of directors for distribution on 3/22/22. ​The Green Burial Council's mission is to inspire and advocate for environmentally sustainable, natural death care through education and certification. We aim to hold our product providers to the highest standards and expect them to treat all descendants with respect, and engender trust between members of the deathcare community. The Tree of Life Ovum Fungi met enough of our Burial Container Standards Evaluation criteria to pass with a 2 of 3 Leaf rating. This certification looks at the materials and metho ..read more

Written by Tamsin Ramone & Alyssa Wormald for the Green Burial Council. Read more about the authors at the end of this article. The Green Burial Council was founded to help educate people who are interested in gentle end-of-life options. When researching burial alternatives and cremation, here are some things to consider. Cremation continues to gain popularity for many reasons. In 2018, the Cremation Society stated that in Australia nearly 70% of people chose cremation for their final send off. With the ecological issues surrounding conventional burials becoming more well known, many pe ..read more

Written by Miranda Booher for the Green Burial Council. Read more about the author at the end of this article. There comes a time in every pet owner’s life when you realize your furry friend doesn’t have much time left. They grow slower on their walks, develop age-related conditions, and don’t seem to enjoy life as much as they used to when they were a pup. It’s difficult enough to process the grief of losing your pet. But then having to plan a funeral on top of that can feel like it’s too much to bear. To help ease the burden you’re carrying, we’ve put together a list of five green ways you ..read more

Ariel Leath Back in 2008, Pete McQuillin and his wife Nancy Chubb had a conversation familiar to many of us. They discussed their end of life wishes, speaking candidly about their desires for a simple return to the Earth -- a green burial. Neither of them realized it at the time, but in expressing this desire, they tipped the first domino toward creating a community that forever changed the green burial landscape. Pete died unexpectedly on January 8th, 2022 and his burial matched his original desires exactly. This comes as no surprise, seeing as he dedicated the last 14 years of his life to ..read more