How death education inspires Green-Wood’s newest burial option

What if leaving this world meant bringing a forest to life?

In 2027, Green-Wood Cemetery expects to become the first cemetery in New York State to offer natural organic reduction, commonly known as terramation or human composting, pending state approval.

The process will be offered alongside the cemetery’s conventional burial options and its existing green burial service, which avoids embalming and uses biodegradable burial materials. A leader in death education, the cemetery has made an intentional cultural shift in the way it approaches memorialization to optimize eco-friendliness.

Terramation does not include embalming or placement in the ground, as in a traditional burial. Instead, it organically decomposes a body and returns the remains to the earth. This is done by placing a body inside an enclosure filled with organic matter such as wood chips, straw and alfalfa and gently mixing the materials as they naturally decay.

The complete process generally takes six to 12 weeks. Green-Wood plans to use the processed soil to nourish native plant species on the cemetery grounds.

This emerging process has many in the community curious, drawing a diverse mix of reactions.

Before becoming a teacher, visitor Amanda was set to become a funeral director until she discovered more about standard memorialization practices.

“One of the reasons why I left that industry and decided ultimately not to go into it is because formaldehyde is not good for the environment or for people,” she said.

However, Amanda thinks terramation is a great idea.

“To me, it just seems better for the environment,” she said. “It’s kind of nice to live on in another being. And it’s nice that it’s cyclical, how it would be in nature, naturally. [...] From birth to life to death and then back into birthing another piece of nature.”

Sandy, a visitor from Rochester, agreed.

“I feel like it’s beautiful,” she said. “I like the idea of growing something living from a death.”

Sunset Park resident James regards Green-Wood as one of his favorite spaces and has visited frequently since moving to the neighborhood. When considering ancient cultures, he sees terramation as “more traditional” than conventional burial to begin with.

“It’s just kind of natural. Giving back to the earth [from where we came],” he said. “So I think it makes more sense, actually.”

Traditional full-service burials can cost $8,800 or more. Comparable terramation services generally cost between $5,000 and $7,000, although Green-Wood has not yet announced what it will charge.

Other visitors are a little more cautious but understand the demand.

“I think it’s awesome. It might not necessarily be for me, but I totally respect the beauty of that decision,” Robert said.

He expressed a desire to be buried one day but appreciates the fact that Green-Wood is expanding its range of options.

While plans for the service are finalized, Green-Wood staff members are taking every opportunity to educate the public through programming such as Death Cafés, where neighbors gather in a safe space over tea and pastries to openly discuss death.

The cemetery also hosts Sunday in the Cemetery, an open house featuring talks on green burial practices, expert panel discussions, workshops and public tours.

These educational spaces, including those in the new Green-House visitor and education center, which opened April 18 at 25th Street and Fifth Avenue, lay the groundwork for community members to expand the options they consider when thinking about death and dying.

“To educate people, you need space to gather them,” Green-Wood President Meera Joshi said. “You can do things via the internet and on Zoom, but nothing replaces that in-person contact, and with the [classroom] facilities we have now, we can do a lot more work with schools and with adults and colleges to let them know what’s going on at Green-Wood, and then to walk over and see [sustainability] in practice.”

With more than 60 percent of consumers surveyed by the National Funeral Directors Association interested in exploring green funeral options, Green-Wood is leveraging its position as a historic landmark and sustainability beacon at the perfect time. It demonstrates that eco-conscious living in a crowded city starts with simple conversations and authentic public engagement.

“Death is something we can walk away from, or we can embrace as part of reality,” Joshi continued. “There definitely need to be more places where New Yorkers and others can come and comfortably talk about the pain and the loss and also find the beauty and remembrance.”