WDEC 2026 at the City cemetery "Pri Sv. Duhu"

City Cemetery “Pri Sv. Duhu” in Koprivnica, Croatia, marked WDEC 2026 with an educational walk for high school students and a new promotional video.

City cemetery promotional video

As part of the Week of Discovering European Cemeteries (WDEC), held from 22 to 31 May 2026 and organized by the Association of Significant Cemeteries in Europe (ASCE), the City Cemetery “Pri Sv. Duhu” in Koprivnica, managed by Komunalac LLC, once again took part in this significant annual event. As a member of ASCE, the Koprivnica cemetery promotes the value of cemeteries as places of cultural heritage, history, art, and memory through its activities.

On this occasion, a new promotional video about the city cemetery was produced. Cemeteries are much more than places of remembrance – they are open-air museums and guardians of local history, architecture, and cultural heritage. Through this video, Komunalac LLC invites visitors to take a walk through the cemetery and discover its peace, artistic value, and the stories of notable individuals who have shaped our city. You can watch the video HERE.

Educational walk for students

This year’s event theme focuses on knowledge and quality education for young people, with the aim of introducing them to cultural heritage, history and important people through an interesting and student-friendly approach.

As part of the program, an educational walk through the city cemetery was held on May 28, 2026, with the participation of first-grade students from the “Fran Galović” General High School, accompanied by their class teacher Mišela Lokotar and history teacher Maja Maček Trešcec. The educational tour was led by cemetery manager Josipa Loinjak and horticultural engineer Nataša Njegovec along a pre-planned route designed for high school students.

Learning about heritage and sustainability

During the tour, the students learned about the history of the cemetery and its significance for the local community, as well as interesting facts about notable individuals and important historical events. They also explored the cemetery’s landscape, horticultural, and architectural values. Special emphasis was placed on raising awareness of the importance of preserving cultural heritage and respecting spaces of memory.

In addition to the educational content, the students had the opportunity to learn about the cemetery’s new, more advanced waste separation system, which helps reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills and increases the share of recyclable materials.

WDEC 2024 at the Drenova Cemetery

The Week of Discovering European Cemeteries 2024 in Rijeka, held from May 14 to 31, was dedicated to the horticulture at Rijeka's largest cemetery, Drenova.

Environmental Sustainability and Climate Change

The theme of this year's Week of Discovering European Cemeteries was "Environmental sustainability and climate change".

Members of ASCE and other European cemeteries are determined allies in the collective fight against climate change. For years, they have been working on mitigating its effects through a wide range of actions and initiatives that demonstrate a strong commitment to the environment. Their activities include responsible use of fossil fuels and water, integrating renewable energy sources, respecting the biological diversity of cemetery plants and fauna, improving native vegetation, responsible waste management, and electrifying their vehicle fleets.

This year's WDEC aimed to raise awareness about the importance of addressing climate change through various events and activities, showcasing different ways in which cemeteries and their visitors can contribute to reducing the negative impact on the environment.

Week of Discovering European Cemeteries in Rijeka

The Week of Discovering European Cemeteries in Rijeka was celebrated from May 14th to May 31st.

The program began on Monday, May 14th, with the grand opening of an exhibition displayed on pedestals along Korzo. The exhibition introduced residents and visitors to the rich horticulture of Rijeka's largest cemetery, Drenova, highlighting its connection to the natural environment.

Horticulture is a valuable aspect of every cemetery, receiving special attention in maintenance, landscaping, and enhancement. Our cemeteries serve as urban parks. The diverse horticultural species, carefully planned and arranged, invite visitors to enjoy relaxing walks. These spaces create intimate areas enriched with vibrant colors, shapes, and scents, as well as numerous geometric forms of plants that intertwine and complement the diverse terrain, creating an extraordinary natural dynamic within the cemetery.

The program continued on Monday, May 27th, at 6:00 PM with a tour of the Drenova Cemetery, accompanied by musical performances by students of the Ivan Matetić Ronjov Music School under the guidance of their mentors. The event also featured a display of photographs of plant species and an educational walk led by Mr. Goran Huljenić, mag.ing.silv., from Urbani šumari d.o.o. Novo Čiče.

The remaining days were reserved for individual visits and cemetery tours, assisted either by the ARTOUR  mobile application or the brochure available at the following links:

• English brochure
• Croatian brochure

Event photos:

WDEC 2023 in Koprivnica

On 1 June 2023, an educational walk was held at the City cemetery "Pri Svetom Duhu" in Koprivnica, Croatia, as part of this year's WDEC.

Educational walk

During the Week of Discovering European Cemeteries 2023, the Municipal Utility Company Komunalac LLC Koprivnica, in cooperation with the Historical Society of Koprivnica, organized an educational walk through the City cemetery "Pri Svetom Duhu" in Koprivnica. The goal was to raise awareness of the importance of cemeteries, their architectural solutions, artistic monuments, and historical facts related to the emergence and development of graves and customs in the cemetery.

The educational walk was held on June 1st, 2023, at 4:00 p.m., by Komunalac and the historian Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sc. Hrvoje Petrić. During the walk, several grave sites were shown that are specific in terms of cultural or historical significance.

Dr. Petrić gave a short lecture on the centuries-old development of the City and the creation of Koprivnica cemeteries in the Chapel of the Holy Spirit, and then the educational walk through the cemetery began. Family tombs, chapels and mausoleums are the last resting place of famous people from Koprivnica and are the last witnesses of their existence.

This manifestation was a unique opportunity for the citizens of the city of Koprivnica to get acquainted with the rich history, high artistic, cultural and anthropological works hidden in the City cemetery "Pri Svetom Duhu", and to learn or remember the generations that built this city through this segment of life.

Cemetery brochure

As part of the WDEC 2023, Komunalac created and published a short brochure on the history of the city cemetery, its famous monuments and people buried there. The brochure also provides citizens with useful information about the cemetery's opening hours, contacts and additional information.

The brochure was published on the company's website as well as on social networks.

You can see and download the brochure HERE.