Cittaslow: Growing interest from South Korea. Delegation from Boseong-gun visits the Orvieto headquarters.

ORVIETO – After some twenty years of Cittaslow’s presence in Korea, there is steadily growing interest in the Italian development model. Indeed, there is an increasing number of not only tourists visiting Italian Cittaslow towns (recently, a national Korean TV channel aired a feature on Chiavenna with Cittaslow Italy Coordinator Luca Della Bitta) but also delegations from Korean municipalities and regions keen to learn more about and replicate this virtuous development model.

The latest delegation to visit the Cittaslow International headquarters in Orvieto came from the coastal town of Boseong-gun, in the Jeollanam-do region. The group of public officials was led by Kim Cheolu, Mayor of Boseong-gun and Governor of the local county.

Acting as host was Cittaslow Secretary General Pier Giorgio Oliveti, who—along with Marina Schettini, Luca Filippetti, and Aldo Graziani—outlined the Network’s operational methods, key projects, and certification process. It was an opportunity to highlight the strength of a network now present in 33 countries, comprising over 3,000 member towns and involving 21 million citizens.

The Korean officials—experts in urban development, spatial planning, and environmental and agricultural policies—participated in a technical seminar marked by a fruitful exchange of expertise. The guests expressed great admiration for the experience of Orvieto, a co-founding city of the movement, showing particular interest in:

• Policies for sustainable urban development;

• Strategies to combat depopulation and revitalize historic town centers;

• Enhancing the value of historical, cultural, and landscape heritage.
  

A key topic of the meeting was "Cittaslow Tourism"—an approach to sustainable tourism capable of creating new professional opportunities for younger generations. Indeed, in its policies aimed at improving quality of life, Cittaslow makes the active involvement of the local community in territorial development processes a fundamental requirement.

Mayor Kim also showed particular interest in the Umbrian "agriturismo" (farm-stay) model, a system that combines the promotion of excellent local products—foremost among them olive oil and wine—with personalized hospitality, all while guided by a "sense of limits."

The meeting concluded with a significant milestone: Boseong-gun announced its readiness to launch the certification process to officially join the Cittaslow network.

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