We are living in a fast-paced world shaped by Industrial Revolution. We do feel the need to slow down and take a breath, but since school we are told that we should work harder and faster, and do more if we are to achieve a standing in life. However, as we go about doing more and faster, stress and lifestyle diseases take a toll on our body and mind. We are unable to give time to people close to us and even to ourselves. Some cultural values force us to think that doing more is a virtue. It is not. In fact, there is a social movement that calls for resisting the pull of fast life, and it is called the Slow Movement.
How it all began:
The Slow movement traces its origins to the Slow Food movement in Italy. Slow Food movement came about in 1986 when McDonalds opened its branch in Rome. Afraid that the fast food giant might overtake the traditional European food, Italian food lovers demonstrated against the same. As a response to fast food, Italian chef Carlo Petrini and a group of activists started Slow Food movement, which emphasizes consumption of organically grown, traditionally cooked local food. Today Slow Food movement is active in about 160 countries around the world.
Slow City
Over time, the movement spread to other aspects of life, one of which is Slow City movement also knows as CittaSlow. Slow city movement aims to improve the quality of life in a city while slowing down the overall pace of the town. Slow city seeks to build cities that discourage use of cars and have more open spaces , less noise and less crowd. 236 cities in 30 countries and territories have adopted these goals and have become certified slow cities, Kesennuma in Japan, Sedgefield in South Africa, Akyaka in Turkey being some examples.
Downshifting
Instead of choosing a job that gives you high salary but less time, you choose a job that offers less in cash, but more in kind in terms of free time, and in terms of opportunities to do what you love. People across Western countries are leaving high-paying jobs for smaller, more satisfying ones, and this phenomenon is called ‘Downshifting'. Downshifters are people who adopt long-term voluntary simplicity in their life. They accept less money through fewer hours worked in order to have time for the important things in life. They also emphasize consuming less so as to reduce their ecological footprint. In order to downshift successfully, you have to be ready to live with less material stuff. This is where Slow Movement crosses path with Minimalism.
