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.
Upcoming Webinars for 2023
- Coming Soon! -
- Coming Soon! -
CBA Cocktail Conversation: Chaplaincy and Community Care
Tuesday July 18th 7PM ET/ 4pm PT 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 gathering opportunity is open to everyone, but please pre-register for the zoom link. Come prepared to connect with others who care about Conservation Burial, and to celebrate all the new growth emerging! REGISTER HERE |
Miss a Webinar? You can still watch these past offerings:

Cocktail Conversation - Ways to Engage Beyond Burial - WATCH VIDEO
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.
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.

CBA Webinar Financial Series Part 2:
Exploring our Financial Obligations
Wednesday September 21st 5pm est / 2pm pst
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.
$25 - General Public
$10 - Students
Free - CBA Members
Exploring our Financial Obligations
Wednesday September 21st 5pm est / 2pm pst
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.
$25 - General Public
$10 - Students
Free - CBA Members

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.
The presentation is one hour long, followed by a 30 minute Q&A.
$25 General Public
$10 Students
Free - CBA Members
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.
The presentation is one hour long, followed by a 30 minute Q&A.
$25 General Public
$10 Students
Free - CBA Members

Cocktail Conversation with author Mallory McDuff
This offering is free for general public as well as CBA members -
please register for the link to view.
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.
What people are saying
"Our Last Best Act is a living testament to a conscious life because it does not shun death, but embraces it. Every household should have this essential book in their library as a reference point and a point of revelation, pragmatic and visionary at once. Mallory McDuff shows us that to die well is a kin to living well. We do have agency in how we wish to return our body lovingly back to Earth with the least amount of harm.”
--Terry Tempest Williams, author, Erosion -- Essays of Undoing
This offering is free for general public as well as CBA members -
please register for the link to view.
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.
What people are saying
"Our Last Best Act is a living testament to a conscious life because it does not shun death, but embraces it. Every household should have this essential book in their library as a reference point and a point of revelation, pragmatic and visionary at once. Mallory McDuff shows us that to die well is a kin to living well. We do have agency in how we wish to return our body lovingly back to Earth with the least amount of harm.”
--Terry Tempest Williams, author, Erosion -- Essays of Undoing
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. |
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. |
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. |
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