MOBILE NECROPOLIS: THE POTENTIAL, EFFECTS AND MEANING OF LARGE SCALE MOVE OF HUMAN REMAINS IN SWEDEN

Cemeteries and human remains are expected to "rest in peace", but many cemeteries are in the future threatened by climate change and exploitation.

In this project, that will contribute to strategies for expected relocation of burial sites, the value of the total threatened area is studied from both a monetary and an experiential perspective.

All Swedish threatened cemeteries are quantitatively mapped (with GIS through county board’s mapping) and compared with qualitative data (from surveys and workshops) from a current cemetery relocation in Kiruna due to mining exploitation.

The results, focusing on ´eternal rest´ versus ´mobility´, involve both the extent of future burial relocations and how such relocation can be materialized, located and integrated with people´s needs for place identity, individual memories and cultural heritage. Research issues addressed are; To what extent are cemeteries in danger and to what value?

What is the general view of the relocation of human remains and what problems are associated with this? and How can knowledge from the project be applied in future situations?

The project is run in close collaboration with the Church of Sweden and an international reference group, and the result will thus be made visible to stakeholders and as well be part of a national and international discussion on attitudes and strategies for future relocation needs.