Slow Food
Members of Slow food meet regularly to enjoy long slow sociable meals. But, Slow food isn't just about enjoying good food. It is about improving the quality of our lives. It believes a slower pace of life is healthier and better for us, and that fast food and the fast life is destroying an important part of our culture. Each culture has its own language, music, art. And “it also has its food culture', says Carlo Petrini, the founder of Slow Food.


Psychologists agree. They tell us it's important for human beings to enjoy a good meal together around a table, and that it's especially important in families. The Slow food movement wants to make sure we don't lose our food culture and our regional cooking. Slow food also works with teachers in schools to teach children about food and how to enjoy it. The number of fast food outlets continues to grow, but 6,000 of Slow food's 66,000 members are in America, the home of fast food. Perhaps, things are changing?


Slow Cities
Slow Cities are cities of'good living. They promise to work to improve the quality of life of their citizens, and protect local businesses, skills, and traditions. They promise to reduce traffic and noise, create cycle paths, protect parks and green areas, and ban car alarms and neon-lit advertisements. They promote local food production, small shops that sell local speciality foods, and restaurants that serve traditional dishes. For example, in Bra there are no cars in the town square, and the fruit and vegetables in school meals are organic.


The food and wine festivals that Slow food organizes attract thousands of tourists every year. Paolo Saturnini, founder of the Slow Cities movement believes this is the way to protect the unique character of our towns and cities, and stop the invasion of fast food and the American way of life. And he's pleased about the long list of towns in Italy and abroad which want to join the Slow Cities movement. It shows that a lot of people agree with him.