Conservation Burial Webinars — Open to All

The CBA is developing a series of webinar presentations to present educational and informational resources to CBA members and non-members alike. These webinars are available free to CBA members, and the general public can register to watch them live for $25 per webinar, or $10 per webinar for students. Complete the registration forms below to attend and receive the video recording of the webinar listed after the event. You may also purchase recordings of earlier webinars as they become available.

---

Miss a Webinar? You can still watch these past offerings:

CBA Case Study:
​Opening Blazing Star Sanctuary, Texas' first Conservation Burial Ground

Join Bethany Foshee, Stewardship & Outreach Director for the Coastal Prairie Conservancy and Cemetery Manager for Nature's Burial, to learn about Texas's first Certified Conservation Cemetery, the Blazing Star Sanctuary. 
Blazing Star Sanctuary is part of CPC's almost 20,000 acres of protected lands that make up the Katy Prairie Preserve system. It took almost five years of careful planning and determination to launch Blazing Star Sanctuary as a Conservation Burial Ground as well as a newly restored Tall Grass Prairie preserve. Join the talk to hear the inspiring story! 

Register Here for the Case Study

---

Conservation Burial as Climate and Community Action

Stories from Bluestem, Larkspur, Prairie Creek, and Heartwood Preserve,
as presented at the LTA SE Regional Conference, Spring 2025

In the Spring of 2025, several CBA board members presented a workshop at the Southeast Land Trust Conference in Asheville. Conservation Burial as Climate and Community Action was an hour-long presentation, showcasing the climate and community impacts from four conservation burial grounds across the Southeast.
Hear from Freddie Johnson of Prairie Creek Conservation Cemetery; Laura Starkey of Heartwood Nature Preserve and Cemetery; John Christian Phifer of Larkspur Conservation; and Heidi Hannapel and Jeff Masten of Bluestem Conservation Cemetery. We look forward to sharing stories about the value and benefits of creating resilient, living landscapes for our communities.  

Register Here and watch now

---

A Legacy of Conservation:
​How does a land trust build a sustainable future through natural burial?

Join Steve Barg, Executive Director of Jo Daviess Conservation Foundation, and Andra Olney-Larson, Operations and Sales Manager of Casper Creek Natural Cemetery, to learn about the journey to reintroduce conservation burial to a community and bolster the actions of a committed 501c3 organization.

This presentation will delve into the steps taken by a land trust to establish the only GBC certified conservation burial ground in Illinois offering a renewal of empowerment over end-of-life decisions, and how this carefully explored option led to growth for a non-profit seeking to restore the landscape. Learn how the choices were made to use available resources to meet the organization’s needs and mission, and to restore a connection to the land that had been lost. From the first board meeting, to budgeting, to a blooming business– this webinar will illuminate the story of how the Driftless area is served by Casper Creek.

Register Here and watch now

---

CBA Webinar Financial Series Part 3:
Investments for Growing

The third and final installment of the three-part Financial Management Webinar Series!

This last installment, "Investments for Growing," addresses some ways that CBGs are implementing their plan to fulfill perpetual obligations to people and the conservation land through different vehicles such as endowments, perpetual care, and other funds.

Register Here and Watch Now

---

CBA Webinar Financial Series Part 2:
Exploring our Financial Obligations

In this second webinar "Exploring Our Financial Obligations," the CBA Presentation Team will delve into details involved in both short-term and long-term categories of strategic financial planning ranging from start-up funding and cashflow tools to Endowments. The presentation will be one hour long, followed by a 30 minute Q&A.

Register Here and Watch Now

---

CBA Webinar Financial Series Part 1:
​What/Why/How Of Financial Sustainability

In this first webinar of a three part series, CBA board members share not just the importance of planning for perpetuity, but how to begin to develop budgeting assets and monitor a long-term financial plan. The focus of this webinar is on identifying where to start in taking care of land, people, and future obligations.

Register Here and Watch Now

Cocktail Conversations

Author Mallory McDuff

We enjoyed an informal interview and conversation on zoom with author Mallory McDuff, whose newly released book Our Last Best Act, is a reflective and instructive resource for end of life planning.

"Our Last Best Act equips readers to face end-of-life planning with climate and community in mind. After the sudden deaths of her parents, Mallory McDuff confronted her own mortality in a world threatened by the climate crisis. As a mother and teacher, she began to research sustainable practices around death and dying, determined to honor her parents’ commitment to caring for the earth. What started as a personal journey expanded into a yearlong exploration of green burials, aquamation, conservation cemeteries, death doulas, home funerals, and human composting. Our Last Best Act explores the choices we make--and how our death can honor our values and create a legacy for the world.

Register Here and Watch Now

---

​Ways to Engage Beyond Burial

Conservation Burial Grounds are beautiful places, and often host programs and other ways to connect to the land beyond burials and graveside visits - including bird watching, farm stays, weddings, summer camps, work parties, and outdoor school programs.

​We’ll share some stories and examples from The Forest in Ashland, Oregon, Coastal Prairie Conservancy outside Houston, Texas, Heartwood Preserve in Tampa, Florida, and White Eagle Memorial Preserve near Goldendale, Washington.

Watch Now

---

CBA Cocktail Conversation:
​Becoming the Heart of a Community

Join CBA members Jodie Buller, Freddie Johnson, and special guests for a warm and engaging Cocktail Conversation as we toast the approaching end of the year. Our conversation explores the topic How conservation burial grounds become the heart of a community. Panelists will remember the many paths each burial ground explored as it found its place among its neighbors, kin and community.
This casual gathering is open to everyone, but please register to receive the youtube link. Settle in with a hot cocoa or hot toddy, for a conversation with others who value the community of conservation burial.

Register Here and watch now

---

CBA Cocktail Conversation:
​Chaplaincy and Community Care

Join us for a conversation with Larkspur Conservation’s Interfaith Chaplain Meg Wade on Zoom about:

• Holding space for grieving families
• Why everyone, including cemeteries, benefit from chaplaincy
• Community building with grief at the center

This casual and inspiring conversation is open to everyone, please register for the zoom link.

Register here and watch now

---

Freddie Johnson

Jeff Masten

Conservation Easements on Conservation Burial Grounds: What, Why and How

Conservation easements are an essential element in conservation burial grounds. The Green Burial Council describes them as: 
A voluntary legal agreement between a landowner and a land trust (or government agency) that permanently limits the uses of the land in order to protect its conservation values. This webinar provides a basic understanding of conservation easements and their purposes, including how writing the conservation easement can impact the long term management of the burial ground. CBA Founders Freddie Johnson, of Prairie Creek Conservation Cemetery (FL), and Jeff Masten, of Bluestem Conservation Cemetery, (NC) share experiences and advice from years of practice as conservationists and burial ground operators. 

Register Here and Watch Now

---

Heidi Hannapel of Bluestem Conservation Cemetery walking to talk

Supporting Families and Communities Before, During, and After a Burial

Please join us as we go deeper into the heart of this work. We hear from a handful of CBA founders about their approach to the more intangible aspects of this work, including showing up with integrity, setting boundaries, managing expectations, and holding space for grief. We also talk through the logistics and best practices of support before a burial, during the experience, and during the months and years afterwards.

Register Here and Watch Now

---

Cassie Barrett

David Ponoroff

Natural Burial Interment Methods:
​Body Burials and Cremated Remains

Introducing nuts and bolts about Natural Burial methods and practices, presented by founding CBA cemetery representatives Cassie Barrett from Carolina Memorial Sanctuary in Asheville, NC, and moderated by David Ponoroff from Larkspur Conservation at Taylor Hollow in Nashville, TN.

​We go into detail about conveyance, grave preparation and closing, and guest participation, both for body burials and cremated remains interment and scattering.

REGISTER HERE and Watch Now

What conservation education must build is an ethical underpinning for land economics and a universal curiosity to understand the land mechanism. Conservation may then follow." — Aldo Leopold