The project ‘Community development in Portugal and Spain: Death literacy and compassionate communities’ (Reference PA08/CE/24, 22 April 2025) addresses the growing relevance of death and bereavement in the context of contemporary societies, marked by population ageing and the prevalence of chronic diseases.

In many contexts, such as Portugal and Spain, death has moved away from the family and community sphere and into the hospital environment. This phenomenon, described and discussed by various contemporary authors, highlights death as a ‘forbidden’ topic/event and a medical failure, dehumanising the process. ‘Compassionate cities’, based on the community health model of the Ottawa Charter, propose reintegrating death and mourning into the public sphere, empowering communities to deal with the life cycle in a supportive and compassionate way. Community death literacy will have the potential to develop a culture of mutual support and preparation for bereavement.

The study integrates three main objectives: (1) to describe the levels of death literacy in samples from Portugal and Spain, investigating community knowledge and support skills on death and bereavement issues; (2) to determine the impact of compassionate community initiatives in Portugal and Spain, analysing the changes generated in health and social well-being; (3) and to identify unmet community needs related to death and bereavement support, providing information for future policies and community interventions.