{"id":11244,"date":"2016-12-01T12:14:03","date_gmt":"2016-12-01T12:14:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/edcities.whads.com\/news\/korean-member-cities-visit-the-iaec-awarded-good-practice-of-the-gamcheon-cultural-village\/"},"modified":"2026-05-03T10:56:49","modified_gmt":"2026-05-03T08:56:49","slug":"korean-member-cities-visit-the-iaec-awarded-good-practice-of-the-gamcheon-cultural-village","status":"publish","type":"edc_news","link":"https:\/\/edcities.whads.com\/en\/news\/korean-member-cities-visit-the-iaec-awarded-good-practice-of-the-gamcheon-cultural-village\/","title":{"rendered":"Korean member cities visited the IAEC Awarded good practice of the Gamcheon Culture Village"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Study visit began the afternoon of November 29th<\/sup> with an Introduction of the Gamcheon Culture Village. The works continued on November 30th<\/sup> with a welcome ceremony presided by the Mayor of Saha-gu, Mr. Kyung-Hoon Lee, the reading of the Manifesto of Mayors of the Educating Cities on occasion of the International Day of the Educating City, and a Ceremony of Opening of an Exhibition Booth in the Gamcheon Culture village.<\/p>

Later on, the Mayor of Saha-gu gave a presentation on city renovation continued by a visit on-the-ground to the Gamcheon Culture Village where the participants knew first-hand the main civic agents of the Gamcheon Culture Village.<\/p>

Last but not least, there was a Critical Peer Review of the Visit so as the participants could exchange about they have seen and could learn actively the key aspects of the good practice.<\/p>

About the Gamcheon Culture Village:<\/strong><\/p>

The history of the Gamcheon Culture Village, located on a city slope, goes back to the 1950s when thousands of refugees from the Korean War from all over the country began living there, making it a large area of hurriedly built houses piled on top of each other on the hillside. Its streets form a labyrinth and the pastel colors of its houses give the village a picturesque look.<\/p>

With the rise of industrialization, Gamcheon reached almost 30,000 inhabitants, but afterward most of its population moved to other cities, and the population fell to 8,000.<\/p>

This is an ageing population, made up 24% of people over 65. Many of the houses were abandoned, which together with the lack of basic infrastructure (running water, sewer system, etc.), gave it a rundown look, in danger of disappearing over the time.<\/p>

In 2010, the local Government of Saha-gu, in collaboration with urban planners, artists and the residents, had the idea of regenerating the area and attracting tourism, opting for a sustainable development that would respect its unique character and artistic value.<\/p>

The project of renovation of the Gamcheon Culture Village with the participation of citizenship was one of the 3 awarded good practices of the 1st edition of the Educating Cities’ Award which was given during the 14th IAEC Congress (June 2016).<\/p>