From Home Funeral to Green Burial

Home funeral communities often want to bury in a cemetery that does not require a cement vault, and where the use of a biodegradable container, lack of toxic chemicals, and robust family participation are encouraged. Finding green burial space nearby is becoming increasingly possible through the efforts of local advocates who engage their cemetery operators and commissioners.

​OUR TOP 3 RESOURCES 

TO HELP YOU FIND A GREEN BURIAL 

NH Funeral Resources

This list is updated regularly and shared with other related nonprofit organizations around the country to help people find green space.

Green Burial Council

Cemeteries who choose to be certified by the Green Burial Council agree to align with the GBC’s standards, goals, and mission.

The Natural End Map

You may also find both cemeteries and service providers who have taken the Natural End Pledge at The Natural End Map. ​
​LEARN MORE
​
To learn more about what it is like to participate in a green burial, read On the Way to the Green Burial Cemetery: A Guide for Families. And for answers to your most burning questions, read Real Answers to Questions Real People Ask About Green Burial.

​Both are available, plus much more on home funerals and green burials, in the book Changing Landscapes: Exploring the growth of ethical, compassionate, and environmentally sustainable green funeral practices

Videos

Steelmantown Cemetery  
Captures the true essence of what the definition of natural burial is, and would be the closest thing to actually being fortunate enough to participate in one. 2015 (28 min.)

A Will for the Woods
What if our last act could be a gift to the planet? Musician and psychiatrist Clark Wang prepares for his own green burial in this immersive documentary. (94 min.)

Saving One Million Acres for Two Thousand Years
TEDx talk featuring Dr. Billy Campbell (14 min.)

It's What She Would Have Wanted
TEDx talk by Claire and Ru Callender, sextons of a natural burial ground and progressive funeral directors of Totnes, UK (17 min.)

Dying Green
focuses on the revolutionary idea by Dr. Billy Campbell of using our own death and natural burial to fund land conservation and create wildlife preserves. (23 min.)

Green Goodbyes
Proponents of natural burial want to reduce the pollution and resource waste associated with funerals, which also includes burying masses of hardwood and steel. One solution is to use eco-friendly biodegradable coffins made out of cardboard or even banana leaves, increase natural burial sites, where plots blend in with the natural surroundings. Follows a woman trying to start the first green cemetery in MA and families selecting green plots.  7-22-13  (10 min.)

Green Burial - KQED QUEST
​A look at green burial families, featuring Joe Sehee (Green Burial Council founder) and Jerrigrace Lyons, Final Passages founder  (10 min.)

Articles

​Think Outside the Box: Being Green at the End of Life 
It’s time we laid our current American burial practices to rest in favor of a more authentically Catholic—and eco-friendly—approach. By Joe Sehee, U.S. Catholic Faith in Real Life 11-2011

Natural Burial: Bringing Death Back Down to Earth 
Raised to see cemeteries as “spooky” and alienating, Champion is pleased to help regreen—and reclaim—the cemetery as a place of life. And, honestly, how scary could a graveyard named The Good Earth be, especially with a caretaker like Champion around? “I’ll be the old lady without the cats but with goats and a cemetery,” she says, with a hearty laugh. “My grandkids will love it.” By Mark Harris, The Progressive 9-3-2016
​
Your Ultimate Cheat Sheet For Green Funeral Terms 
​What the heck is the diff between green burial, home burial, blended funerals, and more? Find out the definitions here to help define common terms, including bio, hydro, and soil language. A must read. By Lee Webster, Funeral One blog 6-3-2015
Picture
Shroud Burial, photo courtesy of Ramsey Creek Conservation, SC