Matt DiPaola Matt DiPaola
Matt DiPaola
Published Dec 9, 2025
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Here’s what I learned about death and our impact on the environment during a recent interview with John Hall , Founder of both Humanitree and Petatree, a Canadian social-impact venture working to transform how we think about death, memorials and environmental legacy.
Most of us don’t think about the carbon footprint of what happens after we die. But the traditional death-care system has real environmental consequences. Cremation releases roughly 520 pounds of CO₂ per person, and North America buries millions of tons of chemicals, metals, and embalming compounds in the ground each year. Cemeteries are officially considered “brown land,” meaning they’re often too contaminated for natural regeneration.
And that is before we count the 400,000 acres of mature trees cut down every year to make caskets.
In a moment when climate considerations touch nearly every part of modern life, one category has remained largely unchanged. Until now.
Replacing tombstones with trees
Humanitree offers a natural, sustainable alternative: instead of a cemetery plot, families choose a tree in a protected forest conservation area. Cremated remains are blended with an organic buffer that neutralizes the ashes and allows the nutrients to feed the roots of the tree.
Within about 14 months, the memorial tree recaptures the carbon released during the cremation itself. One of the planet’s most basic carbon-capture systems – trees – are used to close the loop.
When you step back, it feels like the most elemental definition of legacy: returning something meaningful to the earth.
Why this matters – the demand is already here
The shift toward cremation is already happening. In Canada, cremation rates have risen from 36% to 80% in just six years, driven by affordability and an increased desire for sustainable choices (68% of people are interested in green funeral options, according to a 2024 survey from the National Funeral Directors Association – NFDA).
At the same time, the baby-boomer generation is entering their final stage of life – meaning the number of deaths in North America will increase dramatically over the next decade. The current system simply cannot scale sustainably.
That same NFDA study also highlighted that “the green funeral services market is a growing industry, valued at over $600 million globally in 2023 and projected to reach over $1 billion by 2030, indicating a clear response to consumer demand.”
Humanitree offers a solution that protects land, restores ecosystems, and provides families with a meaningful place of remembrance that actually benefits the planet rather than burdening it.
From pets to people: proving the model
Humanitree emerged from Hall’s first company: Petatree, which transforms pet ashes into a memorial tree. That pilot produced 5 years of data and thousands of trees – each recapturing the carbon “paw print” of the cremation process – and it proved something powerful:
When people see a meaningful climate solution they can personally participate in, they do.
Grief becomes purpose. Mourning becomes restoration.
Not just a greener funeral
Humanitree doesn’t build cemeteries. It establishes forest conservations on land with ecological value – habitats, natural corridors, and protected green space. It allows families to pour ashes into a pre-drilled hole in front of a tree they have chosen for their loved one. For this to succeed, the ashes have to be mixed with their Petatree pH buffer, a combination of organic materials that neutralizes the alkalinity of the ashes and releases the nutrients within.
Without the buffer, human ashes are toxic and will kill all organic matter they touch, including the roots of trees. However, with their process, the tree’s roots absorb the nutrients of those ashes, allowing them to say that “Humanitree transforms the ashes of your loved one into the life of a tree.”
The first Humanitree Trillium Forest in the Greater Toronto Area will become a blueprint for other regions, adapted to local communities and cultures.
What begins as a final resting place becomes long-term carbon capture and ecological restoration.
And for families, it becomes a living memorial rooted in nature rather than marble.
How You Can Help
Humanitree is actively looking for:
legacy-minded funders
individuals or families who want to support conservation
land development partners
people interested in bringing this model to their own region
If you’re a funder, land-owner, or simply curious about supporting a regenerative alternative to traditional death care, I encourage you to reach out directly to John Hall to learn more about Humanitree and the Humanitree Forest planned for the GTA.
Even a simple introduction to someone who cares about conservation, climate, or legacy could make a pivotal difference