Gail Rubin, CT, widely known as The Doyenne of Death®, is an internationally recognized death educator, speaker, author, and film curator who has made it her life's work to help people talk about the one thing they're most likely to avoid: death. With warmth, wit, and a deep respect for human stories, Gail uses humor, popular culture, and movies to transform uncomfortable end-of-life conversations into meaningful, even enjoyable, discussions.
She is the award-winning author of A Good Goodbye: Funeral Planning for Those Who Don't Plan to Die, Kicking the Bucket List: 100 Downsizing and Organizing Things to Do Before You Die, Hail and Farewell: Cremation Ceremonies, Templates and Tips, The Before I Die Festival in a Box, and 98.6 Mortality Movies to See Before You Die. Her books blend practical guidance with compassion, empowering readers to plan ahead, reduce stress on loved ones, and live more intentionally, because contemplating mortality tends to sharpen one's appreciation for life.
Gail is the coordinator of the award-winning Before I Die New Mexico Festival, an annual community event that brings together professionals and the public to explore death-related topics through workshops, conversations, art, and education. She is also a pioneer of the Death Cafe movement in the United States, helping normalize open, judgment-free conversations about death long before it became a cultural trend. She also created the Newly-Dead® Game, which tests couples on how well they know each other's last wishes.
A Certified Thanatologist (CT), Gail is trained in death, grief, and bereavement education and is known for her engaging speaking style that combines expert knowledge with humor and humanity. She frequently uses films as conversation starters, hosting the Mortality Movies TV series and Mortality Movie Night events where audiences explore themes of mortality, loss, and legacy, often laughing, sometimes crying, and always thinking a little deeper by the end.
Her ideas have reached a global audience through TEDx talks, including her 2015 TEDx presentation on the importance of starting end-of-life conversations before a death occurs and her 2025 TEDxABQ talk addressing medical aid in dying. In recognition of her leadership and impact, Albuquerque Business First named her one of their Women of Influence in 2019.
Gail's professional affiliations include the Association for Death Education and Counseling, which honored her with the 2024 Community Educator Award, as well as the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association, Toastmasters International, and the National Speakers Association.
Her personal mission is summed up in her signature motto: "Talking about sex won't make you pregnant. Talking about funerals won't make you dead."
Through her writing, speaking, films, and festivals, Gail Rubin continues to help people face mortality with curiosity, courage, and a sense of humor, one conversation (and one movie) at a time. Learn more at www.AGoodGoodbye.com.