Your last goodbye, the eco-friendly way

Are you curious about how you can do the same? Well, I have the right person joining me today who knows a thing or two about death care practices and sustainability. His name is an, the managing director of Ang Mo funeral directors, one of the oldest and largest funeral companies in Singapore, Duan. Thank you for joining me on the Climate conversations. Thank you

for having me here. I understand that this is a family business with a long history that was started by your great grandfather and you officially started as director almost 20 years ago. You must have witnessed or received different kinds of the special request from families. Were there any particular end of life ceremonies that you found just powerfully poignant or memorable one way or the other. There are many in my 1st 10 years.

I actually served more than 3000 families. So, you know, families, they come from all walks of life. I have served family who has multiple spouses serve families who have quarl over religion, which is very common, especially in Singapore. We also have served with no families who want for green conservation efforts as well. We have done funerals, for example, when a person likes golf so much, then we decorate the entire place just like a country club. So this

S S C C table, that's a Sentosa table. That's another country club table. So that's interesting and this is how he wants his loved ones, his golf k to remember him. So we try to fulfill all wishes as much as we can within the legal boundaries. Yeah, every funeral is unique and special in its own way. Trend wise, have much changed or evolved in how funerals are carried out in Singapore over the years. I think trends wise. It has changed a lot. I entered in the profession in 1995.

It was very traditional. You have more burials today. You have about 82% cremation back then in the 19 eighties and nineties, the numbers for cremation is very low. Singaporeans do their funeral predominantly based on two factors. One is how the regulations shapes behavior and second is acceptance by people as well. So for instance, burials used to be on perpetual freehold land. And in the year 1998 the government agencies changed the land policy of 15 years to optimize land policy. And

that shapes the behavior between burial versus cremation. Ok. So please walk us through the process from when you received the body from the family to the actual funeral or the ceremony when we receive the first call. And through the first call, we will get some basic information when the disease is pass on, what's the primary cause of death? And we will go over to the place of death to transport the beloved to our care center. And this is where

the family will have funeral arrangements together with us. And from there, we will understand the preferences of the families. What are the last wishes of the deceased person which we call beloved. One can choose to have embalming and one can choose not to have embalming. Once embalming is performed, it allows the family to view from the first day to the last day, which typically in singing funs are conducted on average of five days. Is it

an intricate process to embalm? It is definitely an intricate process because embalming is art and science. So it requires qualified embalmers, good quality embalming chemicals and also dependent on the cause of death. And we will just make sure that the disease appear good in the next few days to allow the family members to grieve. So there are multiple ways to return to the earth. But just how much impact they have on the environment is the question here.

So let's go through some of the methods. Maybe you can walk us through, maybe the benefits, the drawbacks. What goes into the process? Let's start with the cremation. You did mention it's the most common method in Singapore. Surely it takes up a little space. But the environmental impact in Singapore, we have a very interesting situation. As compared to other countries. We are relatively small in size. Cremation does emits a lot of carbon emissions. But it is also the same for

other forms. It's just whether is it directly or indirectly, it there are many different methods but of course, the most natural way is to do burial. But burrow in what forms burial in the way that Singapore de takes or burial in the most natural form as in, you know, going into the forest, just bury it just wearing biodegradable clothings and without any graveyards. So for instance, there is a lot of bars over this green world called aqua. Then process also has the use of energy as well.

What goes into that process? A is actually alkaline hydrolysis. It uses water and strong chemicals. Example, sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide with a mix of them. How toxic is that? There aren't many studies to say how toxic it is because the adoption rate is not very high. But what we must also remember here is actually a measurement, some of them might say it is very green. You are not using, burning more fuel for the cremation, but you are also

actually using energy for this process as well. Next will be after this is being done, there are also waste water and how is this waste water being discharged into our public sewage system which eventually leads to our new water that we consume. How about human composting? Not many countries have legalized it yet, human composting is not available in Singapore. I wouldn't know if it will be available soon or will there be a demand? Human composting is actually the acceleration for the

human to decompose. So if one is being buried in the ground, it will actually decompose over a number of years. Human composting is one way that you introduce ingredients and materials to actually accelerate the entire process and this process requires energy as well, but it shortens the entire period to just a few months. So I see that human composting is no different of a natural barrier except the introduction of some form of industrialization to accelerate the entire process.

So I feel that if this is something that the people want, there must be more studies into this and to see how it can be implemented. But of course, in all decisions where there's a barrier, there's a cremation, a cremation and many different things. There are many benefits and there are also a lot of tradeoffs.

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by sea shorten. Lower down to the sea surface, it floats about 20 to 45 minutes before it sinks down to the bottom of the sea bed and you will slowly disintegrate. So that's a very beautiful way. And the reason I brought this in more than 10 years ago was because of two reasons one is that I really dislike the idea of sinking porcelain urns, marble urns, granite urns into the sea. And I felt that it actually affects the marine biodiversity and environment as well. So that's a no, no to me.

So I went high and low search for the solutions. The second is actually how beautiful it is for the family members to, you know, hold their hands together, bid farewell. It helps the grieving journey of the families. And that's the last moment I remember as opposed to, you know, you think that and that's it. So today, this is a common site for families to choose sea barrier. Oh, wow, that's very beautiful. Any other ideas or

options out there that you think is eco-friendly? Many years ago, we also brought in what we call the willow cascades, willow cascades are natural materials and which we actually we it because it's flexible, it is able to weave it into a shape of cascades. Today, there are more people asking for this option. Of course, not as many as the traditional options, but there are more family members who choose this option. I noticed that in the us that the green trend seems to be picking up, especially

among young, you know, the the youth. But would you say you see much of that here in Asia? Actually, the green adoption by people here are not necessarily the young, it really depends on the person. So we do have people who are senior in age and they opt for that, not because of the green movement just because he enjoy going to forest hiking and he just want to do it that way. So sometimes it's not so much of the green, but because of their preferences,

costs are greener funerals more expensive than traditional ones. The green options in today's terms is more expensive than the usual ones. That's because the demand is not as high. And that's why all of these products has to be brought in from overseas. And sometimes if you look just at the product itself, it is 100% green because of the material, the processor is green. But is it truly green green? I would say that no, it is depends on

how you define it. Because for this product to be able to be sold in Singapore, you need to fly caskets in willow caskets, you need to fly in this by the sea and also contribute indirectly in the entire supply chain for coming emissions. But it's good to have this product because it actually brings out the green consciousness of people. So I would always say that the end matters, but the journey to the end matters equally as well. That's a very good point.

And in the future, do you think we would see more of these eco alternatives becoming more popular or commonplace? I think it goes back to demand and supply. Funeral directors generally provides what the family wants. When there is higher demand, naturally, there will also be more products available at the same time. And green products have to evolve. If it has to have a greater adoption, it has to evolve in terms of its technology and also how

it's being done. So I'm sure a lot of people are wondering, religious or non religious, plain or fancy. How can we pick what's right for us? I would say that pick something that represents your life. I think that's important and how you want to be remembered. There's no right and wrong when it comes to funerals. No two funeral is the same. No two Christian funeral is the same because we all have different personalities and

how we want to be remembered. I think it's important to convey this wishes to the people that you love and not just keep it to yourself because you need someone to execute on your behalf. Because when you leave this world, I'm sure that everyone wants their loved ones to have a meaningful life after our departure. What would you say is the biggest misconception that people have about, you know, funeral industry and what's the one thing that you would

like to change? There are many things that I want to change. I would like to change how our cemeteries are today in Singapore because to me, these are not cemeteries, these are Gravier. I've been to more than 20 countries to visit all different cemeteries and we can have something like a memorial park as opposed to a cemetery, a cemetery, a Columbarium actually is a physical location that brings families together. There is a physical end to a body, but it's definitely

not an end to our relationships. I think having a dignified place for people to come, helps to bind society together. Next thing if I can change is that I hope that funeral parlors can be part of a community and not be located in industrial parks. They have a lot of noise, they have a lot of dust. It's not very dignified to have a funeral to be conducted. And unfortunately, that's the reality in Singapore. But I have confidence that policymakers will have wisdom to go into that direction.

I look forward to that soon. I hope before I die. Thank you so much for your insights and your candid answers. Now, remember choosing a green funeral is a personal choice that aligns with your values and beliefs. While it may not have a significant impact on climate change, it's still a step towards sustainability, especially if more of us are conscious of the options available. We hope you enjoyed this episode.

Remember to subscribe and like this podcast. So, you know, when a new episode drops, you can find C N A S climate and sustainability coverage online at C N A dot Asia. The team behind this podcast is Joan Chen, Jacqueline Chan and Christina Robert and I'm Julie Yu signing off.