Gangtok, Jeonju cities join hands for sustainable urban tourism

GANGTOK,: Sikkim’s Gangtok and South Korean city Jeonju have inked a collaboration to work closely for sustainable tourism development in both the cities.

A ‘Declaration of Collaboration’ for sustainable urban tourism development was signed recently between Gangtok Mayor Tshering Palden Bhutia and Jeonju Mayor Chi Ji-Hoon wherein both the cities will be closely working on city-level cooperation and dialogue on various topics.

The agreement took place during the Jeonju Future Cities Forum held from September 15 to 19 at Jeonju, a press release informs.

The Gangok Mayor along with Gangtok Municipal Corporation (GMC) commissioner Gary Chopel participated in the five-day forum.

This international event where global city leaders and experts convened to discuss innovative and sustainable urban development from across the world was sponsored by the European Union under the International Urban & Regional Cooperation (IURC) programme and coordinated by CITYNET office of Korea.

The 2026 edition was held under the theme “Global Urban Tourism: evolving the future” and was attended by participants from Europe, Asia and across.

Incidentally, Gangtok was the only city from the entire South Asia chosen by the IURC to participated in this prestigious forum.

At the forum, GMC commissioner Gary Chopel presented a PPT titled “A Vision for a Wellness City” for Gangtok city, highlighting the achievements of the Sikkim government which was very well received.

In another milestone, CITINET Korea office has expressed their keenness to have Gangtok as the only Indian partner city in their network thereby further boosting the knowledge network collaboration of Gangtok with leading cities of the world, said the GMC.

Jeonju, located in South Korea’s Jeonbuk State, is known for its rich cultural heritage, traditional architecture and culinary traditions. The city’s historic Hanok Village, with more than 700 traditional Korean houses, is recognised as an International Slow City and is one of the country’s major cultural tourism destinations. The city has increasingly focused on preserving its cultural assets while developing tourism in a sustainable manner.