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An Australian firm is planning to create a new type of cemetery that does away with headstones, instead using GPS technology to guide mourners to their loved one’s resting place.
The Acacia Remembrance Sanctuary, due to be constructed on the edge of Sydney, says it will aim to offer a more natural setting and has already picked up awards for the concept designs put forward, which include special location technology to help guide visitors to the final resting place of those they’ve lost.
Those behind the project say they want to try to change not only what a cemetery looks like, but also how we “celebrate death”. The removal of headstones is part of a plan to help de-clutter spaces intended to be peaceful, with the Sanctuary’s website referring to “returning to nature”.
In place of headstones, the Sanctuary says it will use “unobtrusive markers” as well as cutting-edge mapping technology for location plots – most likely linked to a user’s smartphone.
Landscape gardens, a tree-level walkway as well as a modern, open theatre for services are all part of the Sanctuary’s design, and there are suggestions that other sites around the world could also be explored in the future.
