So what is Cittaslow?
Cittaslow is a membership organisation that only towns and cities with a population of less than 50,000 people are eligible to join. Individuals can’t join Cittaslow in the way that they can join the Slow Food movement.
Cittaslow provides a set of goals and aspirations for towns and cities based on the following principles -
- Encouraging diversity rather than standardisation.
- Supporting and encouraging local culture and traditions.
- Working for a more sustainable environment.
- Supporting and encouraging local produce and local products.
- Encouraging healthy living especially through children and young people.
- Working with the local community to build these values.
Put together, these principles aim to enhance the quality of life in Cittaslow towns for residents and visitors alike.
Cittaslow is not anti-progress. It aims to intelligently apply cutting edge solutions in communications, transport, hospitality, consumption, commerce and administration to find new ways of improving people’s lives in a sustainable manner.
Every town that applies to join Cittaslow is assessed against over 60 different criteria that are grouped under 6 main headings.
- Environment policies.
- Infrastructure policies.
- Enhancing the quality of the urban fabric.
- Celebrating and promoting local produce and local products.
- Hospitality & Community.
- Communicating awareness and understanding of Cittaslow
To become a member of Cittaslow, a town must demonstrate that it is meets at least half of the 60 criteria and is actively working towards meeting the rest. After becoming a member, Cittaslow towns are re-assessed at regular intervals to ensure that they are continuing to uphold Cittaslow principles and are still working to improve their quality of life.
There are now 7 Cittaslow towns in the UK. We hope Linlithgow will shortly become the 8th.