Could Green + Gold be the New Black?

There's been an awful lot of talk in the last several years about keeping the funeral industry out of The Red.  Business is changing due to all kinds of trends: decreasing death rate, increasing cremation rate, rising employer costs, rising cost of health care, decreasing asset to debt ratios, and more.  Every one of these topics is the subject of news articles and op-ed pieces in every publication on- or off-line from which we opt to fill our minds.  There's no shortage of opinions on the profitability (or lack thereof) in death care service or where the industry is headed next.  One thing for sure is that for those fifth and sixth generation funeral directors, operating a funeral service business today is nothing like it was five generations ago when cash and bartering were the primary means of transacting business.

Last year in this column I wrote about the Golden Circle of Motivation as presented by Simon Sinek in a TED talk.  In about ten minutes Mr. Sinek makes a compelling argument for any commercial business to re-invent our marketing message to focus on why we do what we do.  Answers like "to make money" are not valid.  A business makes money to exist, it does not exist to make money.  Mr. Sinek uses breathing as an analogy.  We breath to live, not the other way around.  Typically most employees in a business can explain what they do.  Very few can explain how they do it.  And even fewer know why.  For some firms, nobody can articulate why their firm exists.  But those who can explain why, and can explain effectively, already have their go-to-market message.

Why do we make eco-friendly caskets?

In these contemporary times of volatile markets, political challenges, and ever-rising cost of doing business, it is hard enough to keep a business in The Black.  Add to our challenges this new breed of consumer with the loyalty of Benedict Arnold and the attention span of Sponge Bob inhaling more information in a minute today than our forefathers consumed in an entire month.  Could Green and Gold be the new Black?

Nine years ago, I built my first casket.  Eight years ago I sold my first "green" casket.  About five years ago I discovered, almost by accident, that people were more interested in why I build caskets than how I build them (the what has always been obvious).  Like many businesses, I had a web site that described what I was selling.  For a short period I thought I was clever in describing how I was achieving the what but I bored every sorry chap that read my web pages.  Then about two years ago I listened to Simon Sinek's TED talk and things haven't been the same since.  Sales have more than doubled in each of the two years since I have re-focused my go-to-market messaging on why I build environmentally friendly caskets.

I share this with you and anyone interested enough to re-think their marketing message.  For those of you who are 5th or 6th generation funeral directors, I applaud you.  For those of you just entering this industry, I applaud you.  You are both likely very close to explaining "why" you have remained in, or have recently chosen, this profession.  As for the rest of us… can we quickly and effectively explain "why does my firm exist" or "why am I a funeral director" to a 10 year-old?  Keep in mind that "make money" is a cop-out answer.  Not everyone's answer is the same--and need not be.  Your answer is your own--it is your Golden Circle of Motivation.  Making your motivation transparent for your customers will have a profound impact on both their attention span and their loyalty.

So maybe you get the Gold, but where's the Green in the Black?  I illustrate with my own experience.  I don't build caskets to make money--there are a lot of other ways I could make money, and some are far easier than making caskets.  And I don't just make caskets.  I make sustainable, eco-friendly, non-toxic, locally sourced, carbon-negative caskets because I am fascinated by the challenge of building a business on Smarter Planet ideas.  I plant lots and lots of trees because I believe that nobody can argue that planting trees isn't a great

Planting trees is a good thing.

thing.  I source raw materials and manufacture with local talent so that I can create jobs in my community.  This is my passion.  Before listening to Mr. Sinek, I was shy about my passion and kept my motivations private.  I now realize that not only was there no need to hide my motivation, but instead making myself transparent has only helped to build trust in personal relationships, longer attention spans, and true loyalty from our customers.

I invite you to find the why in your motivation.  Yes, I admit Green is arguably an already over-played marketing moniker and trend.  It is no longer relevant to a consumer to tout our wares as simply Green--that's not good enough.  Go for the Gold and tell your customers why you do what you do.  If you can sprinkle a little Green into that Gold I assure you will find yourself a whole new Black.

A Fresh Green Perspective on the Cremation vs. Burial Debate

Every year in America, more and more families opt for cremation as an alternative to a casket and a cemetery burial.  A trend that began in the 1960s with less than 4%, the cremation rate in the U.S. reached 40% in 2010.  With growing interest in sustainability some marketers have espoused cremation as a green alternative to a casketed burial in a cemetery.  Let us examine cremation with carbon life cycle assessment and our definition of Green as it applies to death care to also include political, economic, and toxicity perspectives in promoting a healthy environment for all living things.

A typical cremation includes a cardboard cremation tray or container and human remains.  Cremation uses high-temperature burning, vaporization, and oxidation to reduce human remains to basic chemical compounds including gases and mineral fragments. Crematoriums in the U.S. use a fossil-fuel powered incineration process that takes 2-3 hours for the stages of warm-up and burning with temperatures reaching 1800 degrees Fahrenheit.  An Australian study determined the combined release of CO2 from burning the fossil fuel, cremation container, and human remains is 350 lbs CO2.  Other sources suggest the carbon impact of incineration is closer to 600 lbs CO2 and depends on the mass of the human remains.  

The manufacture and distribution of a steel casket compares at 2000 lbs CO2--that is four to six times more CO2 than the cremation. The Australian study at 350 lbs CO2 compares favorably to a steel casket.  On the other hand, the carbon impact of a green casket made locally from sustainable material is just 50 lbs CO2.  In this comparison, a cremation has seven to ten times greater carbon impact! 

An interesting side note might be to combine a green casket alternative with cremation.  By substituting a locally made sustainable wooden casket as a cremation container, we can actually reduce the carbon impact. Cardboard is a water intensive process and 1 lb of cardboard generates almost 4 lbs of CO2 equivalents.  Interestingly, a 2011 Netherlands study revealed that cremation with wooden caskets result in less fossil-fuel used during incineration.  The wood serves as a renewable fuel source--thus the more wood used in the cremation container, the less fuel required during incineration. 

The toxicity of cremation is harder to quantify than the carbon impact.  Cremation generates emissions of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, particulate matter, mercury, hydrogen fluoride (HF), hydrogen chloride (HCl), NMVOCs, and other heavy metals, in addition to Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP).   For a human body that contains metal implants or dental fillings, the impact of incineration releases harmful dioxins and mercury--there is an ongoing debate on how to address mercury poisoning from cremation which the United States EPA believes is the 3rd largest contributor of air-born mercury contamination.  The United Nations has estimated that 0.2% of the global emission of dioxins and furans are from cremation.  While embalming is not required for direct cremation, circumstances that include a viewing or service prior to cremation often include embalming.  The toxic gases released by cremating an embalmed body are cause for further controversy over the health and environmental impacts of cremation.

One green argument in favor of cremation invokes the social, political, and economic factors of land use.  Studies in Australia and the Netherlands concluded that the carbon impact of cemetery maintenance alone could account for as much as 30 lbs CO2 per grave site every year.  Some believe that a casketed burial in a cemetery occupies precious land space that could serve other useful purposes.  The Netherlands study points out that land competition is a contributing factor for cremation if we consider the land use involved in producing the particleboard, wood, and cotton used in cremation containers.  Add to this the land use required to extract, refine, store, and distribute fossil fuels.  We should also consider that a large contributor to the growing popularity of cremation since the 1960s has to do with the acceptance of cremation by the Catholic Church.  The Catholic Church maintains that cremated remains must be entombed in an appropriate container in a cemetery, mausoleum, or columbarium--all of which occupy land space.  From a full-story perspective on land use by itself, cremation and cemetery burial might be comparable in environmental, political, and economic factors when it comes to promoting a healthy environment for all living things. 

I offer another consideration on the subject land competition when comparing cemetery burials with cremation.  America's cemeteries serve our cities, villages, and towns as green space.  Some cemeteries serve their communities in the same way that a park does by offering a safe and quiet place for a walk or exercise.  Cemeteries provide wildlife habitat for birds, butterflies, and squirrels as well as storm water run-off control.  More recently, America's growing number of conservation cemeteries for natural burials both preserve and protect lands for public enjoyment and for natural wildlife habitat.  Families concerned about land competition may be interested in options for nearby conservation cemeteries where funds raised through the sale of burial plots serve to maintain and protect the land for conservation, wildlife, and recreational purposes.

Every individual has the liberty to make their own choices when it comes to end-of-life care.  We in the death care industry must take responsibility for ensuring an individual's choice be an informed one.  We fail to serve our families if we are complacent in accepting an individual's decision without understanding the motivation or values upon which that decision was made.  That is not to say we should question an individual's values, but rather educate with factual content so that our families can make informed decisions in accordance with their individual values.  After all, isn't it our duty to inform our families without questioning their values or judging their wishes? 

What is the role of biodegradability in greening the funeral industry?

Very often the first question asked of me at a presentation on greening the funeral industry goes something like this, "Isn't the whole idea of a green burial to completely decompose within a few years?"  There are three ideas hidden in this question worth exploring.  First, notice the assumption that the green in green burial is entirely about a single idea.  Second, the question suggests that biodegradability is this single idea.  And third, I find it interesting that so many people believe that rate of decay has significance in being green--as if returning to our earthly elements should be a race.

Greening the funeral industry is not entirely about a single idea.  There are many perspectives we ought to consider when talking to families.  After many years of conversations, reading countless books and articles, and cognitive discourse with industry professionals, academics, and families on this topic, I have adopted a definition of green burial to include several perspectives such as biodegradability, toxicity, sustainability, local-sourcing, and carbon life cycle assessment.  These perspectives overlap and are interrelated.  I believe that being green is a matter of maintaining or improving quality of life for all living things in the environment as they may be affected by the creation, use, and disposition of a product or service.  This definition of being green applies to any product or service and the cradle-to-grave activities that occur as a result of our choice to use that product or service--whether directly or indirectly.

More importantly, I offer that we must further allow leeway in our definition of being green, especially when it comes to funerals, so that we accommodate the different perspectives of individuals.  People have different core values and various experiences upon which their own attitudes toward the environment and perspectives on green burial will differ.  As professionals in funeral service we must recognize that an individual who values sustainability and local-sourcing over biodegradability would not be satisfied with an imported seagrass or wicker casket though it is marketed as a green casket and is 100% biodegradable.  The more we learn about the core values and experiences of our families, the better we can assist them in making choices consistent with their values.

Why is biodegradability so often the first perspective considered in green burial?  First of all, biodegradability is not a new term and not nearly as complex as sustainability or carbon life cycle assessment.  Moreover, people are familiar with "ashes to ashes, dust to dust" and how this centuries-old epitaph suggests that returning to our earthly elements is as natural as it is green.  Then consider the fact that biodegradability is easy to quantify and measure--thus most green, natural burial, and conservation cemeteries have a biodegradability requirement or standard for burial containers and/or monuments.  Biodegradability is a good perspective, but it ought not be the only perspective if our definition of green is to include "maintaining or improving quality of life for all living things."

Let's think on this idea of rapidly returning to the earth somehow being greener than a slower return.  I believe this attitude may originate in individuals who are thinking about preservation through embalming, refrigeration, sealed caskets, and sealed burial vaults.  These practices invoke additional and interrelated perspectives such as toxicity, sustainability, carbon footprint, and land use.  However, the perspective on biodegradability alone is neutral, if not contradictory.  If we consider the pathology of decay for our human remains alone--without attention to the surrounding activities to accelerate decomposition (i.e. cremation, alkali resomation, cryomation) or decelerate decomposition (i.e. embalming, refrigeration) then the argument for biodegradability being green is moot.  Take this one step further and bring in the perspective on carbon footprint.  It would actually be better if our bodies were never to decay--somehow trapping permanently, or sequestering, the carbon that makes up a large part of our body mass.

The same is true if we consider the toxins our bodies accumulate throughout life.  A perspective on toxicity would suggest we contain these toxins or slow decay to give nature time to neutralize these toxins.  Take for example TED talk guest and award winner in designBoom, Jae Rhim Lee, and her Mushroom Death Suit. Her invention is a set of hooded pajamas laced with mushroom spores selected for their ability to cleanse the hundreds of toxins that accumulate in the human body during life.  Yes, that is disposition of human remains by way of feeding the fungi!  

Back to maintaining and preserving the quality of life for all living things in the environment.  Perhaps biodegradability alone should not be our first or most important perspective in greening the funeral industry.  It is an excellent start--easy to observe, easy to explain, and easy to write standards for.  There is precedent for biodegradability requirements in burial practices in many religions around the world including Orthodox and Muslim faiths.  It makes good sense to start with biodegradability, but isn't it time we expand the conversation in funeral service?

Let us advance into this next decade of the green and natural burial movement in North America by adding toxicity, sustainability, local-sourcing, and carbon life cycle assessment to the conversation. We're bound to learn something.