Death lit

Charles 20 Comments
Charles

More to death

 

The Natural Death Centre now has its own online e-magazine. Aimed at consumers, it has features which will also interest funeral directors and celebrants. There’s a straight-talking  feature about natural burial, an analysis of the rise of direct cremation, some radical talk about open-air cremation, a caveat emptor article for funeral shoppers by Jon Underwood, the Death Café man (there’s something about them, too), plus all sorts of other goodies. 

Download it, free, and find out for yourself. 

If you like it, email it to a friend. 

Click the link here

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Jenny Uzzell
11 years ago

Read, and thoroughly enjoyed this, this morning.
Now, what is the best way of getting this out and read by the ‘general public’ (horrible term!) rather than the preserve of FDs, celebrants and others of that ilk?
Jenny

rosie
rosie
11 years ago
Reply to  Jenny Uzzell

So glad you like it Jenny.

All suggestions welcome re spreading it around, viral is what we want.

Please use your Social media skills and recommend it to everyone you know via email and ask them in turn to pass it on, using the link below. There are also fancy picture/click/links available, get in touch if you want to use/embed one.

http://issuu.com/moretodeath/docs/more_to_death_january_2013?mode=window

Rosie

Jenny Uzzell
11 years ago
Reply to  rosie

We have put one of the fancy links onto our website, Rosie, and currently considering what else we can do.

Poppy Mardall
11 years ago

Absolutely LOVE this! Love the whole look of it. And thrilled to be included. Clearly a huge amount of work has gone into this, and well worth it!

Charles Cowling
11 years ago

Don’t overexcite them, Pops.

Poppy Mardall
11 years ago

I can’t help it. I’ve got a problem with over-use of exclamation marks!!!!

Charles Cowling
11 years ago

Just so long as they are organic.

Richard
Richard
11 years ago

Congratulations to all concerned with issue 1 of More to Death magazine, both its layout and content. I’ve clicked through and read the features by Charles and Peter Owen Jones but look forward to finding the time to revisit and digest the rest. Charles was, as ever, frank about the lonely journey while pioneering wider secular and religious discussion of death and dealing with it. From blog hits in the tens per month to 65,000 per month in a few, intense years of heroic perseverance is an amazing feat. Meanwhile, the Rev. Peter Owen Jones questions the need to consecrate… Read more »

Colin Moore
11 years ago

Very impressed with the Natural Death Centre’s new magazine, enjoyed reading it and is a positive step forward. I will add this to the information that I already give out about the Natural Death Centre to everyone attending my courses

James Leedam
11 years ago

Re: NATURAL BURIAL – A CONSIDERED OPINION A CONSIDERED RESPONSE There is no hard and fast rule to say what counts as a natural burial ground. The sheer diversity of the ANBG menber sites which range from the token gesture towrds environmentalism to the out and out eco warriors bears witness to this. What is important anis that trends are becoming greener and every little helps. Many local authority cemetery managers are doing their bit by offering local people green burials within parts of their cemeteries, where environmental concerns are treated with importance and the areas are managed accordingly. This… Read more »

Rosie
11 years ago
Reply to  James Leedam

Readers of this blog will probably have a feeling of deja vu. We have heard ‘exposure like this will tar the whole industry’ before. You are sounding like a worried FD when that side of things is in the spotlight. What does give FDs and the public a bad take on natural burial is those sites where plot prices are in the thousands. End result…..as an option, it is dismissed as burial for the wealthy. There are many sites where prices are comparable with cremation. That was my success, making it affordable for everyone. On that point, having sold over… Read more »

James Leedam
11 years ago
Reply to  Rosie

Rosie, Susan and Rupert… I do like the magazine initiative and wish you well with it. Being an “agent provocateur” is one thing, but I just challenge the constructiveness of publishing such divisive and polarized views. Business, per se, is not bad, even in the natural burial sector. There are some very good, commercially operated natural burial grounds. Distasteful as commerce is at the time of arranging a funeral, burial grounds need income from the sale of burials to support the services they offer, pay back the investment they have made in setting up the burial ground and to maintain… Read more »

Ru Callender
11 years ago

While some local authorities are doing their bit, Exwick Cemetery run by the marvellous Ian Quance springs to mind, others who will remain nameless are terrible token bits of wasteland that the authorities have simply stopped mowing. Plenty of evidence for that, I’ve been to them. The Natural Death Centre is not in the habit of gratefully applauding any attempts to make a token green gesture by any organisation, the idea that criticism somehow spooks the public smacks of a self serving conspiratorial silence. The public deserve to be informed as to the state of play, and things have changed… Read more »

James Leedam
11 years ago
Reply to  Ru Callender

Commentary from the NDC would be more credible if it were based upon sound research and statistical evidence.

susan morris
11 years ago

Dear James Thank you for your views. I hope all is good with you and your natural burial grounds. I absolutely agree about research and statistical evidence, though the definition of research can be difficult to define unless wish to be really empirical. You’ll be glad to hear I am at last on the final leg of the MSc Death and Society degree course, University of Bath . I am aware you won’t be up to speed of the continued and increasing activities of the Association of Natural Burial Grounds as you are not a member. Indeed amongst many activities… Read more »

James Leedam
11 years ago

Susan,
I would be very interested to see the subject and results of your research. Is it published?

Ian Quance
11 years ago

A word from the ‘marvellous’ Ian – thanks Ru. Firstly I’m really encouraged by the debate here, however disappointed by the overall tone. It seems a bit like the political left in the 1970s & 80s so well parodied in ‘The life of Brian’ – are we the Peoples Liberation Front of Palestine or the Palestine Liberation Front (Marxist-Leninist)? or does it really matter? The move to natural burial is a good in itself to me & something we have to pursue for the sake of the environment & our children; I know that is becoming a cliche; tough, it… Read more »

Rosie
11 years ago
Reply to  Ian Quance

Hi Ian We are coming at this from different positions. It is your job to work for your ICCM members! it is mine to inform the public, sorry if that makes thing uncomfortable. As you know my encouragement, to the struggling sites, over the years has mostly fallen on deaf ears, then they wonder why they are getting no burials. Good luck with your new plans to train them. When the public phone me, dismayed by a visit to a hybrid, am I going to say ‘that’s as good as it gets’ or tell them to be grateful for the… Read more »

Ian Quance
11 years ago
Reply to  Rosie

I’ve love to come to the next meeting; my life is about to earthquake but I’ll make all efforts – happy to talk any time. But I guess I’m in a conversation. To be positive; would you consider passing on any complaints about public cemeteries to us; especially if they’re our members?, so we could sensitively see if we could improve things. There’s no malice out there, just ignorance. In return could you acknowledge that negativity towards hybrids (we too are using the name; we’re recycling it) is bad for the image of natural burial in general; Getting something wrong… Read more »

Ian Quance
11 years ago

Sorry – I also wanted to congratulate the authors for the new magazine, I’m sure it will encourage and inform discussion, which is after all what we need to get our services in the public eye.