This.is what an apple orchard looks like in Ireland after a storm.

With the “death positive” movement gaining momentum, the idea of a human remains becoming rich soil that can lead to new life seems — oddly refreshing.

After a decade of planning and fundraising and a successful bid to change Washington state law, Recompose, a composting funeral home, is finally open for business.

The facility, which received its first body in December, looks somewhat like a giant beehive in a warehouse. Each hexagon shape is a long tube filled with wood chips, alfalfa, and straw. That is where the human remains lie. Add in a little organic material munching bacteria, and the human body will turn into a large box of mulch.

The composting process, referred to as “natural organic reduction,” takes about one month and costs $5,500. Families can then decide to find a home in nature for the remains, or Recompose will deliver it to Bells Mountain conservation forest in southern Washington.

The composting process, referred to as “natural organic reduction,” takes about one month and costs $5,500. Families can then decide to find a home in nature for the remains, or Recompose will deliver it to Bells Mountain conservation forest in southern Washington.

📷: 🐘🐘🐘 Orphaned elephants are fed with bottles of milk, at the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary in Samburu County, Kenya, on October 15.

👉 An elephant orphanage 一家大象孤儿院

in Kenya 在肯尼亚

is testing goat milk 最近在测试羊奶

as a food 作为食物

for its small herd 给院内的一小群(大象)

as a potentially healthier and cheaper form of nutrition 作为一种潜在的更健康更便宜的营养品

than human baby formula 比人类奶粉

– a solution 这是一个解决方案

that also puts money back 同时可以把钱交还到

into the pockets of the local community. 当地人的口袋里

The Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, 这家叫做Reteti的大象救护站

in Samburu County 位于Samburu县，

in the semi-arid scrublands of northern Kenyan, 处于肯尼亚北部半干旱灌木地带。

helps to rescue orphaned and abandoned elephant calves. 它的使命是解救成为了孤儿的以及被抛弃的小象。

When the elephants 当象

are old enough 长到足够大

to survive on their own可以独自在野外生存,

the sanctuary 这个救护站,

founded in 2016成立于2016年的,

releases them back 会把它们放回

into the wild 到野外.

The sanctuary has been using 这家动物救护站一直在使用

costly powdered baby milk 很贵的婴儿奶粉

to feed the calves来喂养小象,

but Dr. Steven Chege 但是史蒂夫 切吉博士,

the facility’s veterinarian adviser 这家机构的 兽医顾问

told Reuters 告诉路透社

they have started using 他们已经开始使用

goat milk-based formula 用羊奶做的奶粉

as a potential replacement 作为一种潜在替代品,

especially for infant calves 尤其是针对那些婴儿期的小象宝宝.

“This is an animal 这是一只动物

that has just have maybe 可能刚刚

lost a mother失去了妈妈的,

they have been separated 它们已经被分开

from their family从家人身边.

So所以,

they get a lot of psychological traumas它们都遭受了很多心理创伤,

that is a big challenge这是一个很大的挑战,

which can compromise their health可能会对他们的健康产生不利影响,”

he said他说.

“Goat milk is very good 羊奶很好

for the survival 对生存

and the health 以及健康

of small (elephant) calves 小象的.”

Switching to cheaper goats’ milk from baby formula could slash feeding costs for the sanctuary’s herd which fluctuates between 15-30 animals, he said, although they had not yet done a study factoring in all the associated costs such as refrigeration.

“Goats milk is very rich in protein, and not just protein, it’s very highly digestible protein, unlike cow’s milk,” he said, adding it causes less stomach upsets.

On a recent day, the calves rushed across a dusty enclosure to take a gulp of the milk, exposing their budding tusks as they opened their small mouths to take in feeding bottles.

Local goat farmer, Liwana Lenakukunyia, one of many farmers selling goats’ milk to the sanctuary, told Reuters she was happy to get a new source of revenue. Many of the farmers who are benefiting from the new scheme are women. (Reuters)