MEMORIAL EARTH PARK © AN ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE PUBLIC SPACE: SYNTHESIZING BURIAL MOUNDS, FAMILY TREES AND HUMAN BODY COMPOSTING IN NORTH TEXAS

Author

Gregory A. Craig

Graduation Semester and Year

2020

Language

English

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Landscape Architecture

Department

Landscape Architecture

First Advisor

Diane Jones Allen

Abstract

Over the next 30 years, the population growth in North Texas will place increasing demands on our urban infrastructure and natural resources, while reducing our available public land and open space. Impacts from expanded urban development will decrease our tree canopy coverage, reduce air & water quality and increase impervious surfaces, urban heat island effects and storm water flooding. Environmental sustainability is critical to combat the negative impacts of future growth in North Texas. The memorial landscape is a landscape of tremendous cultural significance in America (Wasserman, 1998) , but the two most traditional means of disposing of human remains are not sustainable, have significant carbon footprints, impose harsh environmental impacts and consume open space that is increasingly scarce in our ever expanding urban regions. Fortunately, new green death care technologies will provide opportunities for cities to create culturally significant and enduring memorial landscape. In recent years, scientific innovations and shifting outlooks on death have bred a change in the ways Americans plan for the fate of their dearly departed, including human body composting and green burial practices that offer a more sustainable vision of death in the future. The objective of this design thesis is to research the history, form, spiritual and symbolic nature of man-made, burial and ceremonial mounds, while Investigating human body composting. The goal is to synthesize a new land-form typology and create an environmentally sustainable, memorial mound park in the North Texas region. A memorial park designed around the principles of environmental sustainability. Sustainability that goes beyond site issues and addresses the issues inherent with traditional human body disposition.

Keywords

Environmental sustainability, Burial mound, Memorial landscape, Memorial park, Traditional death care, Multi-functional park, Spiral pathways, SITES, Spiritual symbolism, Ceremonial earth mound, Memorial Earth Park ©, Human body composting, Human body composting

Disciplines

Architecture | Landscape Architecture

License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Comments

Degree granted by The University of Texas at Arlington

Recommended Citation

Craig, Gregory A., "MEMORIAL EARTH PARK © AN ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE PUBLIC SPACE: SYNTHESIZING BURIAL MOUNDS, FAMILY TREES AND HUMAN BODY COMPOSTING IN NORTH TEXAS" (2020). Landscape Architecture Masters & Design Theses. 298.
https://mavmatrix.uta.edu/landscapearch_theses/298