The November 29 edition

In a country as vast as Australia, the idea that we are running out of places in our cities to bury our dead is quietly ironic. While there is no doubt we have a serious issue with housing the living, it may come as a surprise to some that there’s another competition for real estate right beneath our feet. As Good Weekend staff writer Tim Elliott notes in today’s cover story, humans are the only species to ritually bury their dead. Thus, the fact we are running out of room in our urban graveyards is a cause of anxiety in some quarters, with an ever-growing number of people eager to ensure they will be laid to rest close to loved ones. Such is the demand, Elliott even found a burial plot for sale on Facebook Marketplace while researching this story. The role that gravesites play in allowing us to honour and remember the deceased means finding a solution to the shortage of cemetery space is a problem that is as much emotional and cultural as it is logistical. – Melissa Stevens, editor