Living and Dying Well in an Age of Peak Death
This project aims to investigate the impact of Australia’s impending transition into an era of Peak Death – when more people will die than ever before due to ageing demographics. This project aims to generate new knowledge in the areas of anthropology and death studies utilising a mixed-methods approach to uncover the distinct preferences of dying Australians and the capacity of deathcare sector to meet them. Expected outcomes include a novel theorisation of the peak death phenomenon, a comprehensive mapping of sector capacity, enhance coordination between deathcare operators and regulators, and a new international scholarly network. This should provide significant benefits for industry, regulatory bodies, and the Australian public.
The project will commence in late 2026.
Funded by the Australian Research Council, Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2026 (DE260100835)
Dying ‘Buddhish’ in Australia
From mindfulness tools aimed at confronting terminal diagnoses and supporting hospice staff, to incense and chanting at otherwise secular funerals, Dying ‘Buddhish’ in Australia examines the current influence and future potential of Buddhist contemplative practice in mainstream end-of-life and death care. This project is funded by the Contemplative Studies Centre at The University of Melbourne, with co-investigator A/Prof Anna Halafoff (Deakin University).
Transnational Futures of Deathcare in the Asia-Pacific
Funded by the Melbourne Postdoctoral Fellowship, this new 3-year research project examines deathcare as a site of creative innovation and transnational exchange, in order to map the contours of contemporary death within the Asia-Pacific, and to generate new insights into how the region can meet future challenges to its care of the dying, dead, and bereaved.
Past | Ongoing Research
When Death Falls Apart
PhD fieldwork into collapsing and emerging material traditions of death Japan, focusing on Buddhist altars, graves, and columbaria
DeathTech
I work with the DeathTech Research Team, based at the University of Melbourne, on ARC funded grants: ‘Disposal of the Dead: Beyond Burial and Cremation’ and ‘The Future Cemetery’
Waste & Minimalism
Studying domestic disposal, decluttering, and organising, investigating the theologies of minimalist movements around the world
Endline
Endline: Deathcare During Melbourne’s Covid Crisis is a photo series by Bri Hammond, created in collaboration with Hannah Gould and Samuel Holleran.
Scentscapes of Asia
Forthcoming edited collection in the Penn State University Press Perspectives on Sensory History Series.
High Tech Death in Asia
Collaboration with scholars in Taiwan and Japan to explore advanced technologies (VR, robotics, etc.) for managing the care of the dead