We want to connect all people living in Logatec no matter their background. We will achieve this by promoting values like tolerance, sustainable development of the town, self-sufficiency and environmentalism. This goal will be facilitated by organizing a 3 day festival where people from the region will be able to volunteer, learn, meet, and offer their expertise. It will be followed by 11 one day events/workshops over the course of a year, which will demonstrate and promote good practices.

Our project will take place in the small Slovenian town Logatec and its surroundings.

Logatec lies in a sparsely populated forested area which is not far away from the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana. In recent years, many young families relocated to Logatec to avoid the high cost of living in the capital. In addition, it has attracted a good number of foreign immigrants, who chose to make it their new home or are living in the local asylum center. This influx of people of diverse backgrounds has created a need for more and better ways to meet and socialize, especially in the summer, where the few available activities cater mostly to children. It has also created some apprehension and mistrust, with people being perceived as outsiders and not a real part of the community. The population is disjointed, and we want to bring the community together.

We want to reach as many of the 14.000 people living in Logatec and its surroundings as possible, because we believe that no one in the community should feel abandoned, not welcome or worthless. However, we will focus our efforts on including the recent immigrants. Logatec has had a positive net migration rate in recent years (9,6 in 2019). We don’t want the new inhabitants to feel isolated in a place where they don't know anybody, or where they have trouble understanding their neighbours. By bringing them out of their shell we also want to show the indigenous inhabitants that their new neighbours aren’t strange or entitled others, but people just like them. Finally, we are doing this for the environment, because a society needs a healthy environment to flourish.

We have organized a few large multi-day events in Logatec in the past few years, so we are familiar with the area. We established working relations with local organizations that are determined to see this project succeed. We will select and prepare an appropriate area for the main event (the fair) with the help of volunteers. We will especially encourage recent immigrants to be among them. This will become our main activity hub and our local partners will also provide their facilities for some activities and for follow up events. Together we will reach out to lecturers, artists, businesses and others to find out those who would like to be involved in the fair or be held as good examples in the 11 follow up events.

If our idea is selected there will be more year-round activities and courses in Logatec. Many talented people will find the courage to start new environmentally friendly and community oriented careers. Immigrants from abroad will feel at ease in Logatec and the current inhabitants will accept them and help them succeed. Immigrants from Ljubljana won’t see Logatec just as a dormitory but will help make it a vibrant town. The local community will cooperate in building a sustainable and tolerant society. The impact on the environment will be seen by the absence of trash in nature, clean town streets and more residents choosing to make their homes more environmentally friendly.

Our idea will bring together all parts of the local community for the first time. The project will be an opportunity for all to learn, showcase their skills, volunteer, promote their activities and meet their new neighbours face to face. We want to include at least some residents of the asylum center as volunteers at the main event. They will get one stall where they will be able to introduce themselves and socialize with the locals. We will also organize various workshops which will teach the audience how to develop a sustainable and inclusive community that takes care of nature. We don’t want a split community with people who hide behind their prejudices, but a community able to become stronger by being able to appreciate each member’s qualities.

The goal of all Divja’s activities is to connect people with themselves and nature, promote intergenerational networking, a healthy lifestyle, care for the environment and to spread ancient and modern knowledge for a better tomorrow.
We believe in educating and encouraging people to build sustainable societies and economies along these lines. We also believe that society needs to go past petty divisions and prejudices. We believe in close knit societies who work for the common good. That’s why we see this project as a great opportunity to spread our core beliefs.

Festival stretch tent Tenticle 300m2 10,000€
Rent of the venue - 2000€
Inventory (kitchen utensils, wood and clay for building, sanitary) - 1500€
Personnel fees/pays (cooks, organizers, carpenters&lecturers, musicians/concert, translation of the web page) - 15000€
Photographers and video for main events and follow-up monthly visits of good practices - 4000€
Video equipment and laptop - 2000€
Marketing - 1000€
Organisation of 11 smaller 1 day follow up events - 11000€

We would be happy to get advice from those who have similar organisational experiences. Especially on maintaining engagement over such a period o time.