Going Slow to Build Resilience: Cittaslow in Korea's Rural Regions

Abstract

For remote rural regions, facing structural decline, the Cittaslow (Slow City) movement provides an alternative to conventional development strategies. This paper examines Cittaslow in South Korea, a country known for its fast-paced economic and urban development, with a case study on Cheongsando—the first community to receive the Cittaslow designation in Asia. Despite past research on Cittaslow in other countries, there has been little attention to its application in Korea. In contrast to Korea’s policy that has led to unbalanced regional development, we explain how Cittaslow is an adaptive planning strategy to build resilience in neglected rural areas. It is both a response to globalization and also a strategy for harmonizing local entrepreneurial behavior with state-assisted rural development. We argue that Cittaslow can be an effective place branding strategy for small communities and provides opportunities to enhance local identity, market appeal, and rural community development.