INTEGRATED J. HENRY STUHR FUNERAL HOMES
PERSONAS
PROFILE Established in 1865, J. Henry Stuhr Funeral Chapels and Crematories is the oldest continually family-owned and operated business in South Carolina. The Charleston-based company In January 2012 became the first funeral service provider in state to be certified by the Green Burial Council, a nonprofit organization that encourages eco-friendly alternatives to modern interment practices. jhenrystuhr.com
COMPETITORS HYBRID FUNERAL OPERATORS in the Charleston area including Simplicity Lowcountry Cremation & Burial (with their very competitive pricing) and McAlister-Smith Funeral Home and Cremation. LOCAL CEMETERY PARTNERS including Charleston Cremation Center & Funeral Home and W.M. Smith-McNeal Funeral Home.
ELIZABETH RHODES
20-year-old studying Psychology with a minor in Environmental and Sustainability Studies at the College of Charleston. Grew up in a conservative, rural town, and attending university has exposed her to environmental issues and practices in sustainability. She is already planning a green burial as she is very conscious of lowering her impact on the planet. She’s been vegan for 5 months now, and spends a lot of her time hiking and exploring around Charleston with her dogs.
STEVEN ALMAN
STRATEGIC SUSTAINABILITY GOALS
CHALLENGE
+ Returning the deceased back to nature and naturally recycle into a new life. + Burial activity happens without the use traditional embalming fluids and non-biodegradable materials. + Encourages the use of burial grounds as means of restoration of natural areas through their partnership with Greenhaven Preserve, a natural burial cemetery located in Eastover, SC. + Certified by the Green Burial Council, a non-profit organization that sets standards for green burial in the U.S.
SIMPLE: It’s a fact. Though the increasingly popular natural burial method is considered neo-traditional by most, it’s actually the world’s preferred end-of-life ritual. And, depending on your preferences, the uncomplicated and unpretentious process often offers more value than a conventional burial. MEANINGFUL: Natural burial offers different meanings to different people. Religious traditionalists. Outdoor enthusiasts and environmentalists. Regardless, though, each tends to understand and value man’s place in the so-called Circle of Life. They want to feel part of something bigger and intrinsically eternal than themselves. Each tends to desire the authentically natural, deeply personal and uniquely uplifting memorials in which Greenhaven Preserve specializes. SUSTAINABLE: Their customers and their families appreciate the intent to preserve acre after acre of nature’s pure brilliance. They take comfort in the fact that green burials are chemical free, use less energy and create less waste than modern burials. They value the core commitment to good stewardship and our mission to sustain the sacred ground upon which Greenhaven Preserve lies.
64-year-old retired Tactical Aircraft Maintenance worker for the U.S. Airforce. Seeking a simpler and less expensive alternative to traditional burial practices, while also adhering to his Jewish faith. Pragmatic about death after the passing of his wife Mary Ellen in 2013, and wants to limit the burden of burial responsibilities and cost for his two children, Sara and Paul. Joined the local chapter of the Sierra Club in Charleston to give back to the community and has picked up biking again to stay active in his retirement.
AUDIO ANALYSIS
CONSUMER-FACING STRATEGY
CHALLENGES + Lack of awareness about the science behind the green burial. + Region-specific soil, water, plant, animal habitat. + Recording the location of burial of the loved one due to lack of permanent monument. + Addressing cultural and religious norms and practices *Wicker Casket
ASPECTS
UPSTREAM
DOWNSTREAM
ISSUES
OPPORTUNITIES
Emissions from energy use, during cremation and transportation of remains and caskets, carbon emissions from cremation
Supplier and vendor emissions from manufacture, distribution, and delivery of products and services
Emissions from customer (family and friends) traveling to attend services, visit cemeteries and scatter ashes
Carbon tax and regulations on emissions (toxins emitted in cremation)
Partner with carbon offset NGO’s, discourage cremation, carbon capture, carbon sequestration and scrubbing, end reliance on fossil fuels
Increasing energy consumption and volatile cost
Energy source use of suppliers, vendors and manufacturers
Energy use from customers and maintenance of the cemeteries
Energy prices and access to renewable energy sources
Require renewable energy use upstream and downstream, energy efficiency database and collaborate competitively with other funeral companies
Contamination from funeral home, body prep and cremation services
Contamination from production and manufacture services
Contaminated runoff from cemeteries Water quality, reduced access and (burials and pesticides and fertilizers increased prices used for maintenance)
Land use and facility footprints
Material sourcing (ie. caskets), cemetery land use and supplier facility footprints
Use of concrete and other nonbiodegradable materials for burial, cemetery maintenance
Access to land, emotional attachment to tradition burials and upkeep, negative affects to local ecosystems
Establish more natural burial grounds, goat mowers, encourage bees and other wildlife, composting on facilities upstream & downstream, ban the use of artificial flowers
Chemicals used during embalming, body prep and cremation process
Chemicals used in manufacturing
Release of chemicals and toxins (mercury from teeth fillings, plastic from plastic surgeries) during cremation, break down of caskets, pesticides and fertilizers used for maintenance
Toxicity to humans and ecosystems, increased regulations, cultural norms of embalming
Refrigerated tables, dry ice (takes CO2 out of the air) + fans, natural embalming or no embalming, no cremation
Air Pollution
Emissions from energy use during cremation and transportation of remains and caskets
Emissions from production and manufacture facilities
Emissions from customer (family and friends) traveling transportation to attend services, visit cemeteries and scatter ashes; CO2 and mercury emissions from cremation
Carbon tax and regulations on emissions (toxins emissions in cremation), negative health impacts, growing consumer concern
Home funeral or just graveside services to reduce transportation emissions, no cremation
Waste Mgmt.
Single-use products, food and floral waste from funeral services, fluids & water waste during body prep.
Production processes, packaging and supplier efficiency
Food and other solid waste from funeral services, bodily waste from preparation for burial
Reduction in access to landfills, regulations in bodily waste removal
Eliminate artificial flowers and reduce cut flowers, have potted flowers to buy at cemetery site, composting on site, rental casket
Ozone Layer
Use of CFC refrigerants and air conditioning in preserving body before burial
CFC Refrigerant or air conditioning used in production facilities or transportation services
Air conditioning used during funeral services or transportation
Increased regulations on CFCs
Creation of dry ice for refrigeration, reduction in transportation and air conditioning use
Contributes to ocean acidification in carbon emissions during cremation, fluid wastes during body prep.
Manufacturing pollution into water ways, risk of oil spills + other runoff from reliance on fossil fuels
Pollution runoff from transportation to and from funeral services from customers reliance on fossil fuels
Increased carbon regulations and carbon taxes
Use of toxic remediation strategies, shared economy with rental casket for funeral services
Clear cutting land for funeral home facilities
Clear cutting land for cemeteries and manufacturing plants, wood harvested for caskets
Continued risk of deforestation due to perpetuation of cultural norms
Increased regulations and fines for tree removal, risk of worsening soil erosion
Sustainably harvest wood and eco-friendly caskets, memorial tree planting, encourage natural burial grounds instead of traditional cemeteries and expand conservation burial
Climate Change Energy Water Biodiversity Chemicals + Toxins
Oceans Deforestation
Grey water recycling,water efficiency database and collaborate competitively with other funeral companies, natural water capture for lawn care (irrigation), eliminate body bathing
SUST 713: INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIO 1: DESIGN LEADERSHIP | PROFESSOR SCOTT BOYLSTON | JENNA BOWER, SCOTT CROTZER, KANIKA GOLANI, JOHN STOREY
PURPOSE DRIVEN NATURAL GRACE FUNERALS
PERSONAS
Right - Infinity Burial Suit
PROFILE Natural Grace is a full-service funeral home offering exclusively environmentally sensitive death care options to the greater Los Angeles area. Founded in 2010 by Shari Wolf (who served as Operations Officer and Board Officer of the Green Burial Council), Natural Grace advocates highly personalized green funerals and burials that are simple, affordable and respectful—of the deceased and the living as well as future generations and the planet. naturalgracefunerals.com
COMPETITORS
JEAN WESLEY
67-year-old widow living in Santa Monica. Avid surfer and once-upon a time ‘beach bunny’ who recalls dancing in the rain at Woodstock. Has been an active environmentalist since the first Earth Day in 1970. Recently diagnosed with breast cancer, she wants to plan her funeral now so neither she nor family or friends will need to worry about it later. She decided to have a completely natural burial after befriending Shari Wolf, owner of Natural Grace, at a meeting of the California South Bay Surfrider Foundation, where they both serve on the executive committee.
HYBRID FUNERAL OPERATORS in the LA area including InvoCare, which specializes in unique, in-home planning of funerals and memorials and offers some green burial options like woven wicker caskets LOCAL CEMETERY PARTNERS including Hillside Memorial Park & Mortuary and Woodlawn Cemetery, Mausoleum & Mortuary that are now offering their own green burial options alongside conventional services
STRATEGIC SUSTAINABILITY GOALS + + + + +
Care for dead with minimal environmental impact Conserve natural resources Reduce carbon emissions Protect worker health Restore and preserve habitats
CHALLENGES + Expanding customer awareness and acceptance of green funeral and burial options + Convincing customers to avoid cremation and opt for natural burials instead + Establishing more natural and conservation burial grounds in California (which currently does not have any of the latter)
32-year-old film producer living in Hollywood. He and his 39-year-old scriptwriter wife Jane just lost their 5-year old son Adrian in a freak car accident.. The boy adored regular family hikes in Runyon Canyon and had become obsessed with the majestic Redwood Forest on a recent vacation they took after buying their first Tesla. Keith and Jane are vegan, rely almost completely on solar power at home, and are known in their neighborhood and professions as staunch sustainability advocates. They want a green funeral for their son and then to lay him to rest in a permanently protected and preserved conservation burial ground.
*Infinity Burial Shroud
AUDIO ANALYSIS
Climate Change Energy Water Biodiversity
ASPECTS
NON-TOXIC ALTERNATIVES: Advocates non-toxic and noninvasive body preparation and temporary preservation through cooling and topical preparation instead of the more common formaldehyde-based fluid embalming; offers eco-friendly products for rare cases when embalming is unavoidable. ECO-FRIENDLY CASKETS: Offers a wide range of eco-friendly caskets—from woods selectively harvested from Trappist monk-managed forests in Iowa and fast-growing willow wicker to the $49 entry-level cardboard required for cremation and even a rental casket just for the funeral—and shrouds, including the Infinity Burial Suit that cleanses and purifies the body of toxins that would otherwise seep into the surrounding soil. CARBON OFFSET: Supports NGO TerraPass by purchasing carbon offsets to counter the 540 lbs of CO2 emitted from each typical cremation process, which uses 28 gallons of fuel (roughly the same as a full SUV tank). AFFORDIBILITY: Dispels the idea that cost is connected to the amount of love for the deceased: ‘we never encourage a family to spend more or purchase services that they don’t need or want.’ Provides affordable plans ranging from Simple Burial $1595 to Funeral Service with Burial $2795 and Funeral with Graveside Services $3295 that are consistently less expensive compared to conventional funeral homes. HYBRID AND NATURAL GREEN BURIAL: Partners with several local cemeteries offering hybrid, natural and conservation green burial sections including Joshua Tree Memorial Park. Also arranges out-of-state burial in conversation grounds—’the ultimate in green burial because they … permanently protect, preserve, and steward areas of land that are large enough to be considered a valid conservation effort’ such as in Goldendale, Washington: ‘a beautiful 20 acre natural burial ground surrounded by over 1100 acres of wildlife and permanently protected oak and ponderosa forest’.
KEITH YAMAMOTO
CHALLENGE
CONSUMER-FACING STRATEGY
UPSTREAM
DOWNSTREAM
CHARITY: Established the Bigtree Child Fund to support families with limited financial resources who have lost a child.
ISSUES
OPPORTUNITIES
Emissions from energy use, during cremation and transportation of remains and caskets, carbon emissions from cremation
Supplier and vendor emissions from manufacture, distribution, and delivery of products and services
Emissions from customer (family and friends) traveling to attend services, visit cemeteries and scatter ashes
Carbon tax and regulations on emissions (toxins emitted in cremation)
Partner with carbon offset NGO’s, discourage cremation, carbon capture, carbon sequestration and scrubbing, end reliance on fossil fuels
Increasing energy consumption and volatile cost
Energy source use of suppliers, vendors and manufacturers
Energy use from customers visiting cemeteries
Energy prices and access to renewable energy sources
Require renewable energy use upstream and downstream, energy efficiency database and collaborate competitively with other funeral companies
Contamination from funeral home, body prep and cremation services
Contamination from production and manufacture services
Water quality, reduced access and increased prices
Grey water recycling,water efficiency database and collaborate competitively with other funeral companies, natural water capture for lawn care (irrigation), eliminate body bathing
Land use and facility footprints
Supplier facility footprints
Access to land, emotional attachment to tradition burial systems & upkeep
Establish more natural burial grounds, goat mowers, encourage bees and other wildlife, composting on facilities upstream and downstream, banning the use of artificial flowers
Release of chemicals and toxins (mercury from teeth fillings, plastic from plastic surgeries) during cremation
Cultural norms of embalming
Refrigerated tables, dry ice (takes CO2 out of the air) and fans, natural embalming or no embalming, no cremation
Chemicals + Toxins Air Pollution
Emissions from energy use during cremation and transportation of remains and caskets
Emissions from production and manufacture facilities
Emissions from customer (family and friends) traveling transportation to attend services, visit cemeteries and scatter ashes; CO2 and mercury emissions from cremation
Carbon tax and regulations on emissions (toxins emissions in cremation), negative health impacts, growing consumer concern
Home funeral or just graveside services to reduce transportation emissions, no cremation
Waste Mgmt.
Single-use products, food and floral waste from funeral services, fluids & water waste during body prep.
Production processes, packaging and supplier efficiency
Food and other solid waste from funeral services, bodily waste from preparation for burial
Reduction in access to landfills, regulations in bodily waste removal
Eliminate artificial flowers and reduce cut flowers, have potted flowers to buy at cemetery site, composting on site, rental casket
Ozone Layer
Use of CFC refrigerants and air conditioning in preserving body before burial
CFC Refrigerant or air conditioning used in production facilities or transportation services
Air conditioning used during funeral services or transportation
Increased regulations on CFCs
Creation of dry ice for refrigeration, reduction in transportation and air conditioning use
Carbon emissions during cremation contribute to ocean acidification, fluid wastes during body prep.
Manufacturing pollution into water ways, risk of oil spills + other runoff from reliance on fossil fuels
Pollution runoff from transportation to and from funeral services from customers reliance on fossil fuels
Increased carbon regulations and carbon taxes
Use of toxic remediation strategies, shared economy with rental casket for funeral services
Clear cutting land for funeral home facilities
Clear cutting land for manufacturing plants
Increased regulations and fines for tree removal, risk of worsening soil erosion
Sustainably harvest wood and eco-friendly caskets, memorial tree planting, encourage natural burial grounds instead of traditional cemeteries and expand conservation burial
Oceans Deforestation
SUST 713: INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIO 1: DESIGN LEADERSHIP | PROFESSOR SCOTT BOYLSTON | JENNA BOWER, SCOTT CROTZER, KANIKA GOLANI, JOHN STOREY