Mourning continues to be a taboo in a countryside whereby it is manifested as weakness of individuals while a relation to death and mourning is filled with prejudices, fear.
With comprehensive support to those mourning in the region, carrying out training for professional workers as well as organizing detabuization events, the project will contribute to active participation of those mourning in designated social processes, respecting their rights, eliminating prejudices in regards to mourning.

Upper Savinja Valley (Savinja region, Slovenia) - a rural, demographically endangered region.

A degree of premature deaths is significantly higher in the Upper Savinja Valley than is on average in entire Slovenia. A large problem in the region represents a number of deceased, particularly in traffic accidents caused by alcohol and a degree of deceased due to suicide.
Considering every deceased person leaves 4 to 6 people in major distress, requirements for introducing social programs to support mourning individuals are remarkably high. Mourning continues to be a taboo in a countryside whereby the taboo is manifested as weakness of individuals to cope with their loss while a relation to death, mourning is filled with prejudices and fear. A right to mourning is taken away particularly from men. This often leads to a less healthy or in an unhealthy lifestyle (alcoholism, suicides).

- Mourning children, youngsters and adults: individuals with experience of loosing a close person or health in a family, respectively (regardless of their age, gender, a cause od death).
- Professional coworkers being in a contact with mourning individuals and professional workers facing the losses in their respective work: health and social workers, educators, etc.
- Employees in other supporting services who face dying and mourning in their professional duties: police, fore fighters, workers in funeral and cemetary services, etc.
- Public at large: residents of the Upper Savinja valley (eliminating prejudices against mourning individuals, altering a relation to dying, death and mourning, etc.)
- Policy makers (mayors), media, (non-)governmental organizations in Upper Savinja Valley.

- Individual consultations, support to families with experience of the loss of a close person or health in a family.
- A camp for mourning children and youngsters: empowerment and support in a process of mourning.
- A camp for parents/foster parents of mourning children and youngsters in a process of mourning.
- 3 weekend groups: intense facing, coping with pain of participants due to their losses.
- Lectures and experience workshops for strengthening of competencies, professional workers and those employed in other supporting services professionally facing with dying and mourning.
- International professional symposium: plenary lectures, experience workshops, active participation of professional public bodies.
-Detabuization events for general public: facilitation of 2 round tables.

- Social integration, empowerment of those mourning in the region,
- an access to equal treatment of those mourning, such as in a case of loss of a close person or loss of health in a family,
- easier integration of mourning ones into the environment and their active participation in social processes,
- an improved psycho-physical conditions, spiritual health of those mourning,
- increased awareness of people to ensuring rights of mourning ones: a right for mourning regardless of a gender, a right for farewell, a right for appropriate treatment,
- elevated skills of professional workers dealing with the losses,
- an altered relation toward mourning individuals in segments of society,
- community culture whereby death and mourning will not be a taboo but understood as a part of life.

With comprehensive support to mourning individuals regardless of their age, gender, religion, social status, type of loss, this project partnership will provide equal opportunities to all residents of the Upper Savinja Valley. For an example, an access to quality treatment will be enabled to all the individuals. This will contribute to their easier integration into daily life and society, and improvement of their living conditions.
With raising awareness of needs in regards to mourning and strengthening knowledge on assuring rights to mourning individuals, the project will encourage the individuals into their active participation in social processes, respecting their rights and elimination of prejudices about mourning (democratic and sustainable society with values and mutual respect).

1. Professional services being in a contact with those mourning do not have suitable knowledge to work with those individuals in the need (inappropriate treatment) and frequently do not enable relatives decent farewell from a close person and even advise against the farewell.
2. In a countryside, men are afraid to show their vulnerability, since society expects from them not to fall apart/down/back under emotional burden.
3. Those mourning after their loss due to a sudden form of death (suicide, work, traffic accidents) experience additional loss due to social isolation.
A mission of the partnership is to enhance, facilitate integration of those who mourn (back) into the society, contribution to ensuring their rights are met and to eliminating prejudices against mourning in general.

- Office expenses: 2600 EUR
- Travel expenses: 700 EUR
- Two-day international professional symposium: 4500 EUR
- 2 round tables: 3000 EUR
- Other detabuization activities: 1500 EUR
- Camp for mourning children and youngsters: 10000 EUR
- Camp for parents of mourning children and youngsters: 4500 EUR
- 3 weekend groups: 13500 EUR
- Lectures, experience workshops: 1500 EUR

The project partnership wishes to acquire feedback information about completion of the project (innovativeness of the project, ideas for the access to users in rural communities) and information, such as on hands on experience of organizations with completed projects in other regions in Europe.