A Slow Way To Better Living

by Douglas Ritchie

We live in an era of rush, rush, rush where nobody seems to have the time to slow down and take stock of what they are doing or where they are going. “ Quality Time”, “Work – Life Balance” and “Fast Food” are just a few of the terms we have invented to reflect the increasing pressures we experience in our daily lives. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

More and more individuals and more and more communities are following the advice of the wise man who said,

“As you travel down life’s highway, make sure you take time to stop and smell the roses.”

Now Perth has become the first Scottish member of an international movement of over 100 towns and cities that are dedicated to making life that little bit better by doing things just a little bit slower.

That movement is Cittaslow, a network of towns and cities that has grown out of the Slow Food movement and now has members in Europe, North America and Australia.

Cittaslow promotes quality of life. In the UK, a Cittaslow town signs up to 60 Goals, through which communities set their sights on providing services and delivering projects that help residents enjoy life in their town in a relaxed and pleasant way. Visitors are welcomed as ‘temporary residents’ and encouraged to join in the Slow lifestyle.

‘Living Slow’ involves hastening slowly – “festina lente” as the Romans used to say. The Slow lifestyle respects tradition and quality and seeks to use the best aspects of the modern world to enhance, preserve and enjoy the old ways of doing things, but not to the exclusion of progress and not for the sake of avoiding change.

Living and working in a Cittaslow, or Slow City, requires an attitude of mind that is open to opportunities presented by modern approaches to communication, transportation, production and selling. The aim of a Cittaslow is to encourage people to live and enjoy life at a human pace, and to provide an infrastructure that helps people savour and enjoy life and all it has to offer.

The Cittaslow approach involves living life at a human scale, respecting and supporting the environment and local traditions, and preserving them for current and future generations to enjoy. In simple terms, collective well-being is at the heart of the Cittaslow philosophy.

Graeme Kidd is the President of Cittaslow UK. He is also the Mayor of Ludlow in Shropshire, the first Cittaslow town in the UK. He looks to the Cittaslow Manifesto when describing a Cittaslow town,

“Cittaslow towns are brought to life by people who make time to enjoy a quality of life. They are towns with quality public spaces, theatres, shops, cafes, inns, historic buildings and unspoiled landscapes. They are towns where traditional craft skills are in regular use and fresh, seasonal local produce is available for all to enjoy. In Cittaslow towns, healthy eating, healthy living and enjoying life are central to the community.”

Graeme led the assessment of Perth’s Cittaslow membership application, which was initiated and driven by Perth & Kinross Council and Scottish Enterprise Tayside.

The application was compiled by a Steering Group that comprised representatives of many other local organisations including: Perth & District Hoteliers & Restaurateurs Association; Perth & Kinross Agricultural Forum; Perth & Kinross Association of Voluntary Service; Perth City Centre Management Ltd; Perth College; Perth Farmers Market; Perthshire Chamber of Commerce; Springboard UK; and VisitScotland Perth Area Office.

Graeme Kidd said,

“I was extremely impressed by what I saw in Perth and by the way that many different local organisations worked together to make the case for The Fair City being admitted into the Cittaslow movement.

Everyone in Cittaslow UK looks forward to working with our new colleagues in Perth. I am sure that other Cittaslow towns across Europe and beyond will be able to learn from Perth and I’ve no doubt that Perth will be able to learn from others as we all strive to create better towns to live and work in”.

Welcoming Perth’s membership of Cittaslow, Jill Farrell, Operations Director of Scottish Enterprise Tayside, said,

“Membership of a respected international movement such as Cittaslow is a tremendous achievement for Perth. Everyone involved in pulling together Perth’s membership application is to be congratulated.

I hope that Perth will now act as a catalyst for other Scottish towns to join Cittaslow. Scotland is renowned for its environment and the fine quality food and drink that it produces. A network of Scottish Cittaslow towns would really show the world how much we have to be proud of across our country.”

Her comments were endorsed by Councillor Alan Livingstone, Convenor of Perth & Kinross Council’s Enterprise & Infrastructure Committee, who added,

“This is a great accolade for Perth. Many people have been working on our Cittaslow membership application for the best part of 9 months and they must be applauded for all their terrific work. Joining Cittaslow as its first Scottish member is a valuable independent endorsement of all that is good about Perth.

However, I am conscious that we are now only at the beginning of our Cittaslow journey and need to continue working together on new initiatives that will make Perth an even better place to live and to visit. I’m sure the support and encouragement of our colleagues in the Cittaslow movement will help us to bring forward new ideas and initiatives that will benefit people and businesses in Perth.”

So what happens now?

The Perth & Kinross Cittaslow Steering Group is not resting on its laurels but has already identified a number of projects that it hopes to progress over the next few months. On the local produce and healthy eating side, the Steering Group hope to: work closely with Perth Farmers Market to: highlight the benefits of eating fresh local produce; support and assist on-going initiatives to encourage schools to include local produce on their menus; and work with Springboard UK to develop training programmes that encourage young chefs to use local produce.

The Group also has plans to develop a badging scheme similar to the successful “Local to Ludlow” initiative that highlights and promotes shops, cafes and restaurants that offer local produce.

On wider healthy living initiatives, the Group hopes to organise a number of Greener Workplace projects that promote good environmental practice in local businesses, and to develop “Green Gym” promotions that encourage local workers to enjoy a little exercise in their nearest park during their lunch time.

Another key priority for the Steering Group is to set up a Perthshire Slow Food Convivium (a fancy Latin name for a group of friends) where local food enthusiasts come together on a regular basis to taste and enjoy good food and each other’s company.

As Alan Livingstone says, Perth is at the beginning of its Cittaslow journey. Many of the benefits of Cittaslow membership may not be seen or be obvious immediately. However, over time Perth’s commitment to the principles and the philosophy of Cittaslow will make it a better place to live and work – a place that residents are proud of and that visitors enjoy coming to.

At the end of the day, what’s the point of life is you don’t make time to enjoy all it has to offer. Everyone gets more out of life if we do occasionally stop to smell the roses.

Further information about Perth Cittaslow is available at
www.perthcittaslow.org.uk
This site has links to national Cittaslow and Slow Food websites
and details of all the members of Perth & Kinross Cittaslow Steering Group.