What Our Compliance Specialists Do

Our compliance specialists are responsible for providing unbiased reviews of applications that ensure adherence to our standards in all categories. Each specialist has expertise that qualifies him or her based on education and experience. They generously volunteer their time and expertise to make sure that every certified business and individual meets or exceeds the requirements of their discipline's certification. Our specialists engage with prospective providers, guiding them through the paperwork process to success from the first call to the determination. For a step-by-step guide to the certification process, go to Become Certified. If you have skills that qualify you to participate, please contact these specialists—they'd be delighted to hear from you.  

Products

Sam Bar is a graduate of Northeastern University, Sam worked as a quality assurance and manufacturing engineer for companies in both the United States and China. In 2011, he joined the U.S. Peace Corps as an education volunteer in Mozambique, where he taught at a secondary school and coordinated a national science program. As our go-to expert on sustainability issues in manufacturing and product use, Sam draws on his diverse manufacturing expertise and global development exposure to ensure our product providers represent the values of green burial. Sam@greenburialcouncil.org

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Cemeteries

Matt Connell was born in Wisconsin and grew up in the Chicago area. Since he was a young man, Matt has had a deep interest in beautifying common deathcare practices. This, combined with his passion for protecting our environment, led him to taking part in the green burial movement. He spent many years in the advertising industry, but today, he's spreading the green burial message across the Upper Midwest, including his new home in the Twin Cities. He's hoping to not only teach these values to his two young sons, but to create a more responsible approach to deathcare, and a stronger connection with nature, for everyone.
​Mattconnell@greenburialcouncil.org

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Funeral Homes

David Anderson is a Licensed Funeral Director in Kansas, California, & Oregon. He has an AAS degree in Funeral Science from Arkansas State University - Mountain Home, and is a recipient of the Certificate of Proficiency in Green Funeral Service. David treasures the outdoors, and the wonders our environment provides. He believes everyone should have the chance & opportunity of a dignified and earth friendly disposition.
David.anderson@greenburialcouncil.org

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Emily B. Miller is a licensed Funeral Director/Embalmer and founder of GBC-certified cemetery Colorado Burial Preserve. After receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Religions from Reed College, she studied Funeral Service Education at Lake Washington Institute of Technology. It was in funeral directing classes that Emily first learned of natural burial as an option. In her later experiences in helping families connect with funeral options, she found the options for wild final resting places lacking in Colorado and resolved to join the movement. 
Emilymiller@greenburialcouncil.org

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Sam Perry is a dual-licensed mortician (Indiana and Illinois), green burial advocate, and death educator. He has a BS in Mortuary Science and Funeral Service from Southern Illinois University Carbondale, and is working on his MS in Education from there as well. He currently works as an anatomy curator and as an adjunct professor teaching Changing Landscapes in Funeral Service. He hosts Death Cafés in his community and believes that through death and loss we can find tools for learning to live stronger, more whole lives. Samuelp@greenburialcouncil.org

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Compliance Officer

Mia Nickelson has a BA degree in Cultural Anthropology from Ball State University.  Her education provided her with a strong foundation of knowledge on how our cultural and environmental paradigms interact, an interaction that we see in burial practices across the globe. Her work history with fair trade vendors makes her especially passionate about following environmental principles. She also has professional experience in the nonprofit and higher education sectors with a heavy focus on policy compliance.  In 2021, she volunteered with The Order of The Good Death to research current green burial offerings across the US and Canada. She is excited to use her professional experience and compliance skills to support death positivity and the green burial movement.
Mnickelson@greenburialcouncil.org

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