On April 22, 2021 (Earth Day), NCUE and Fulbright Taiwan jointly organized a tree planting event, at which a Podocarpus Pine was planted on each of NCUE campuses and a thousand saplings were given away, to echo the concept of environmental protection. Director William Brent Christensen of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) conveyed his congratulations through Fulbright Taiwan Executive Director Randall L. Nadeau. It is expected that this event involving government, industry, academia, international partners, and local residents helps raise public awareness about environmental sustainability.
A tree was planted on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C., USA, honoring Senator J. William Fulbright on April 21, 2016. Fulbright Taiwan has extended this idea by launching the initiative “Plant a Tree, Save the Environment” to plant as many trees as possible on school campuses in Taiwan to commemorate the 60-year-long partnership in the educational exchange between the US, and Taiwan. Executive Director Randall L. Nadeau stated that Fulbright Taiwan will continue this tradition, and contribute to Fulbright’s vision of “A world with a little more knowledge and a little less conflict". So far, “Plant a Tree, Save the Environment” has planted 21 trees in Taiwan.
Recognizing the importance of sustainable development, NCUE International Office Dean Lingyu Melody Wen, a Fulbright Senior Scholar, the Fulbright Campus Advisor at NCUE and a Board member of the Taiwan Fulbright Alumni Association, decided to co-host this tree planting event with Fulbright Taiwan on Earth Day 2021 in response to “Plant a Tree, Save the Environment”.
The two Podocarpus Pines planted at the event were donated by the Jinde Middle School Teacher and Student Association. The Jinde Middle School used to be located where NCUE is now. President Ming-ching Pai of the Association has a deep affection for this site. As the Chinese saying goes, “It takes ten years to grow a tree but a hundred years to bring up a generation of good men”. President Pai expressed his expectation that NCUE will extend its influence further in the field of education as it grows the two beautiful trees.
The Changhua County Government provided a thousand free saplings of orange jasmine and sweet osmanthus for NCUE neighborhood residents in hopes of integrating the concept of environmental sustainability into their daily lives. Many NCUE faculty, staff and students, as well as local residents, were attracted to come and lined up at the stalls for the saplings.
Changhua’s Deputy County Mayor Tian-fu Lin, NCUE President Ming-fei Chen, Executive Director Randall Nadeau, President Pai, and General Manager Christy Wang of Ørsted Taiwan shoveled dirt to plant a Podocarpus Pine and presented two saplings to the representatives of neighborhood residents led by Borough Chief Li-chen Li.
The ceremony was attended by a number of distinguished guests, including a superintendent of the county government’s agriculture department, one of NCUE vice presidents, the president and board members of the Taiwan Fulbright Alumni Association, the secretary-general and committee members of the Jinde Middle School Teacher-Student Association, and the head of Branding, Communication & Sustainability of Ørsted Asia Pacific.
In his speech, Deputy County Mayor Lin expressed his appreciation to NCUE for promoting the concept of sustainable development. He indicated that Changhua County is a famous wind farm, accounting for 70% of the total number of onshore and offshore wind turbines in Taiwan. The County Government looks forward to bring in the resources of NCUE to work together towards the sustainable development goals.
NCUE President Chen pointed out that in response to the green energy policy promoted by the government, the University has invested a large amount of money to build a smart grid on the Baoshan campus. NCUE also set up an MW-size energy storage pilot system, which was fully funded by global offshore wind leader Ørsted and the first of its kind in Taiwan, on the Baoshan campus. Furthermore, NCUE is working on the alumni-sponsored campus beautification project on Baoshan, along with continuing to improve the development of the surrounding neighborhood. According to President Chen, Baoshan is expected to become "Changhua's Yangmingshan" and a popular check-in attraction.
