4.7 Chapter Summary
Key Summary Points
- Current conventional methods of dealing with bodies after death are based on ancient practices.
- Certain conventional methods associated with dealing with bodies after death are costly, contribute to the lack of space for the dead, and are not environmentally sustainable.
- Alternative options for dealing with bodies provide an opportunity to move beyond our conventional understandings of burials and cremation.
- There are a variety of “greener” ways to deal with bodies at the end of life. Some are variations on ancient practices and some are recent innovations.
Additional Resources
Additional Viewings
Channel 10. (June 13, 2011). Grave recycling. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfvhUvSYIfg
NBC News. (November 19, 2020). Funerals in the COVID-19 area face immense and emotional hurdles | NBC News NOW. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QoEpDjT21c
Additional Readings
Canada. (n.d.). Funerals. http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/oca-bc.nsf/eng/ca03069.html
Hariyono, W. (September 14, 2015). Vertical cemetery. Procedia Engineering, 118, 201-214. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2015.08.419
How long are graves kept. (n.d.). St. John’s Dixie Cemetery & Crematorium. https://stjohnsdixie.com/cemetery/how-long-are-graves-kept/
Mayer, A. (May 16, 2018). Back to the land. CBC. https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/longform/death-burial-green-recycling
McGee, A. (May 7, 2021). Donating a body to science for medical research in Canada. Canadian Funerals. https://canadianfunerals.com/donating-a-body-to-science-for-medical-research-in-canada/#.Yj4snpopAkg
Ontario. (n.d.). Arrange a funeral, burial, cremation, alkaline hydrolysis or scattering. https://www.ontario.ca/page/arrange-funeral-burial-cremation-alkaline-hydrolysis-or-scattering
Philjacke. (October 28, 2018). Vertical cemetery: Graves in high rise towers. The Tower Info. https://thetowerinfo.com/vertical-cemetery-high-rise/
Understanding funeral costs in Ontario. (n.d.). Passages. https://www.passagescb.ca/understanding-funeral-costs