In the last four decades, Slovenj Gradec established itself far beyond the borders of the homeland as a place of peace and international understanding, by organising particular events and exhibitions in the Gallery of Fine Arts under the auspices of the United Nations. The award of these efforts is a document into which, in 1989, the Secretary of the World Organisation Perez de Cuellar listed Slovenj Gradec among the honorary titleholders Messenger of Peace.
The idea of peace messenger cities is promoting the idea of less violent and more humane world, the world in which tolerance and mutual respect predominate in order to meet the requirements for a better understanding of peace based on justice and human rights.
IAPMC is an abbreviation for the International Association of Peace Messenger Cities. The movement began under the auspices of the United Nations in 1986, which was declared the year of peace. International Association of Peace Messenger Cities was officially founded in 1988 and manages the program in accordance with the Statute of the Association and membership criteria. Representatives of the member cities meet twice a year to exchange programmes, ideas and experience with other cities around the world.
Slovenj Gradec was also integrated into this association in 1989 and has played an active and visible role since the beginning. Today we are honoured that the mayor of Slovenj Gradec is General Secretary of the International Association of Peace Messenger Cities.

The participation in the project of the European Cultural Capital 2012 was without any doubt the most important and most ambitious project in the recent history of the town Slovenj Gradec and has represented a particular challenge. However, at the same time the participation also represented a confirmation of more decade-long creative efforts in the field of culture, art and peace.
The vision of the European Capital Maribor and its partner cities was due primarily to the intention to ensure that the entire Northeast cohesion region would experience an acceleration of development in all fields. In addition to Maribor, Slovenj Gradec and Velenje the cities, such as Ptuj, Novo mesto and Murska Sobota also participated in the project.
In the Municipality of Slovenj Gradec, 25 projects together with multiple parallel activities and host events took place in 2012 under the auspices of the European Capital of Culture. There were more than 100 events all together. Throughout the year 2012, the city was visited by almost 52,000 visitors and more than 3000 performers performed in the same year.

Slovenj Gradec received GOLD AWARD in 2015 in the European competition of the regulation of towns and villages Entente Florale, which has been organized by the Association Entente Florale Europe since 1975.

The movement and its basic motto originate from the wishes and aspirations of the inhabitants of European towns and cities that wanted to create new, higher quality of living for their fellow citizens and tourists.
Slovenia was included in the movement in 1998, when two towns internationally competed for the first time. Slovenj Gradec received the silver medal in 2003, when it participated in the assessment for the first time.

In 2016, the city of Slovenj Gradec was awarded the Silver Recognition under the Slovenia Green Destination quality label. As a result, it was also listed among the TOP 100 most sustainable destinations in the world.

The public agency SPIRIT Slovenia developed the Green Scheme of Slovenian Tourism as a comprehensive system designed to promote the development of sustainable tourism in Slovenia across all three pillars of sustainability—environmental, social, and economic. SLOVENIA GREEN brings together all efforts aimed at sustainable development, with its core objectives being the protection of the environment, preservation of local characteristics, and enhancement of quality of life, while offering outstanding experiences for visitors.

Following renewed evaluations and assessments of sustainability criteria, Slovenj Gradec was awarded the Bronze Recognition of the Slovenia Green Destination quality label in both 2019 and 2023.

The Green Scheme of Slovenian Tourism (GSST) is a national programme and certification system that, under the label SLOVENIA GREEN, brings together all efforts aimed at the sustainable development of tourism in Slovenia. It provides destinations and tourism providers with practical tools for assessing and improving their sustainability performance, while also promoting their green practices through the Slovenia Green label.

The scheme’s key strategic objective is the implementation of sustainable models in Slovenian tourism, both at the level of individual providers and entire destinations. All strategic goals are guided by the principles of sustainable development and a strong commitment to economic, socio-cultural, and environmental responsibility.

Handicraft in Mislinja Valley

In Carinthia, especially in the area of the Mislinja Valley, craftwork is widespread. This was due to the Pan-Slovenian Biennial Exhibition of arts and crafts, which has been taking place since 1977 in Slovenj Gradec. In recent years, the handicraft has been strongly incorporated into the regional tourism offer. Especially in the area of Slovenj Gradec and the wider Mislinja Valley various workshops operate and craft products can be purchased in tourist information centres and shops.

Although certain crafts have already almost died down, in recent years more and more manufacturers, including younger ones, have started creating contemporary handicraft products, which belong to the top of the Slovenian craftwork. Folk handicraft traditions are maintained in many societies and they enrich the regional tourism offer.

The list of craftsmen in Carinthia is available at the following link:
www.duo-kunsthandwerk.eu/koroska_sl