Jeonju City Selects Winners of This Year's World Slow Award

Two Domestic Organizations and One International Individual to Present Cases Next Month

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Hong Jaehee] Jeonju City, Jeollabuk-do, has finally selected Seoul's 'Almaeng', Busan's 'Sisitgol Eoul Happiness Village', and Mayor Herv? Lefebvre of Samatan, France, as this year's World Slow Award winners.

On the 20th, the city announced that it had finalized two domestic organizations and one international individual who concretely practiced the philosophy and purpose of Slow City as winners of the '4th Jeonju World Slow Award'.

This contest was held from March 12 to the end of last month, and the winners were selected through a strict evaluation by a judging committee composed of experts recommended by Jeonju City and the Korea Slow City Headquarters.

First, in the domestic category, 'Almaeng (CEO Ko Geumsuk)', which conducted a plastic-free campaign, was selected as the winner. Almaeng has carried out activities such as 'Plastic Attack', where packaging materials are returned after shopping at large supermarkets to solve the garbage crisis, and lending reusable shopping bags instead of plastic bags at Mangwon Market in Seoul.

Also, 'Sisitgol Eoul Happiness Village (CEO Ahn Kyungsuk)', which has led community restoration in Myeongjang-dong, the old downtown of Busan, was selected as a domestic winner. This organization, mainly composed of parents in Myeongjang-dong, has been engaged in community co-parenting, communal gardening, and commercialization of natural soap using Dongnae hot spring water.

In the international category, Mayor Herv? Lefebvre of Samatan, France, who implemented GREEN policies to restore and create green spaces in the city center of Samatan, was honored with the award.

Mayor Herv? Lefebvre designated the area around the lake in Samatan city as a plant-free zone and promoted a tree replanting project to make it a representative recreational area of Samatan. He also laid the foundation for slow tourism by hosting eco-tourism and gourmet festivals annually.

He received high praise for leading the creation of a GREEN environment by cultivating community gardens within the city and establishing eco-mobility means to replace private vehicles, actively encouraging public and shared transportation systems.

The winners will receive a plaque and a prize of 2 million won, and the international winner's prize will be replaced by airfare and accommodation expenses upon invitation next year.

The winners will present their cases at the 4th Jeonju World Slow Forum & Slow Award ceremony held at the Book Pillar Library in Jeonju City Hall on the 18th of next month. However, due to the impact of COVID-19, the international winner will replace their acceptance speech with a video and will be invited to present their case at the 5th event next year.

A Jeonju city official said, "The winners are those who have best practiced the Slow City spirit, which prioritizes people over cars and green ecology over concrete," adding, "The Jeonju World Slow Award and case presentations will be a valuable time for more citizens and cities worldwide to understand the value and meaning of the slow movement."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.