Capsula Mundi promises to turn cemeteries into "sacred forests"
Project offers 100% biodegradable "eternal rest"
Created by Italian designers Anna Citelli and Raoul Bretzel, World capsule is an oval-shaped receptacle, better known as a biodegradable urn, made from starch bioplastic, in which the body is placed in a fetal position and then buried. The idea is to insert the capsule like a seed into the ground, planting a tree right above it. In this way, the body would provide the necessary nutrients to support the plant's growth. The idea is that cemeteries are not filled with headstones, but with several "sacred" trees.
According to the creators, a coffin has a short useful life and is another product of our society that uses wood. It takes 10 to 40 years for a tree to grow and a coffin is used for three days. The project seeks to help save one tree by planting another instead of using a wooden coffin; not to mention that it is biodegradable, it reduces the problem of soil contamination in cemeteries and the lack of space for storing the deceased.
One of the pillars of the project was to try to produce the lowest possible environmental impact - the capsule is made with 100% biodegradable material, starch bioplastic, which comes from seasonal crops of potatoes and corn.
The tree is chosen when the person is alive. After the death, family and friends will take care of the plant.
Cemeteries bring environmental problems, such as soil and groundwater contamination. The creators of Capsula Mundi are not clear on the issue.
Regarding the subject, there is a division of opinion between those who believe that soil contamination occurs due to the practice of embalming the body (which uses chemical substances) and those who consider that, even with small quantities, metals and other substances present in the human body, if everyone used capsules of the type, there would be these residues would be considerable and could harm the environment.
Check out the video (in English) about the initiative.
