Is Human Composting the Future of Death?

If you’re a regular YES! reader, you’re probably a composting whiz. You compost your kitchen scraps, your garden waste, and, if you’re truly dedicated, you might even use a composting toilet. But did you ever think about composting the most organic thing in your possession: your body? 

If you died this week, your family could either have a traditional funeral and bury your body or cremate it—both processes that are exceptionally taxing on the planet. But what if we could do death differently? Grist talks with Katrina Spade, the founder and executive director of the Urban Death Project, who’s trying to make the option of human composting a reality. Here’s to hoping the last thing you do on earth is become beautiful dirt.