National Chiayi University organized a 12-day spring school ending successfully on March 7th for sister school students in Japan to experience Chiayi’s local culture. A graduation ceremony was held by NCYU for the 22 participants from five Japanese universities who participated in the entire program, to award them with graduation certificates. It was the first time for all the participating students to visit Taiwan. Through the comprehensive program, they learned Mandarin and Taiwanese culture, and gained valuable insights into sustainable development. During the graduation ceremony, they happily shared their experience and expressed their hope for continued exchanges with Taiwan in the future.
On behalf of NCYU, Lan-Szu Chou, Dean of International Affairs, presented the graduation certificates to the participants. The spring program this year was attended by 22 students from five universities: Kagawa University, Setsunan University, University of Hyogo, University of Miyazaki, and Kumamoto University. They engaged in a variety of courses designed by the Office of International Affairs, including "Watching Taiwanese Baseball Film KANO," "Exploring NCYU Campus," "Promoting Campus Sustainability," "Learning Mandarin," "Taiwanese Etiquette and Taboos," "Seal Carving Skill and Practice," "Making Taiwanese Delicacy: Pineapple Cakes," "Introduction to Taiwan's Indigenous Tribes and Cultures," "Taiwan's Wildlife Ecology," and "Taiwan-Japan Song Contest." They also visited the Southern Branch of the National Palace Museum, Haomei Village in Budai Township, Poftongaveoveo Art Village, Prison Museum, Wenhua Road Night Market, etc., which provided multifaceted insights into NCYU and local culture.
During the graduation ceremony, Riori Kiyosaki from Kumamoto University shared her delightful experience of digging for clams in Taiwan for the first time. Being able to use her newly learned Mandarin to go shopping gave her a sense of accomplishment. Rina Hirashima, a second-year student at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Miyazaki, said that she was enormously inspired by the SDGs course and the sustainable facilities on NCYU’s campus. It was the first time she saw sustainable and circular facilities on campus, which further sparked her interest in studying water and land resources. She hopes to have the opportunity to take relevant courses again in the future. Hiroki Shinohara, who studies at Setsunan University, was also deeply impressed by NCYU’s efforts in pursuing a green and sustainable campus. She hopes to have the chance to visit NCYU again and even study at the education-related graduate program here. A student at Kagawa University, Shinomiya Kanako had the opportunity to compare the cultural differences between Taiwan and Japan from what she observed during the spring program. Through this experience, she also reflected on the impact of Japanese colonization on the Taiwanese society, and tried to answer her own questions about Japan’s colonial rule of Taiwan. She hopes to have the opportunity to delve deeper into the history of Taiwan and Japan in the future.
International Office Director Lrong Lim and Prof.
Takamizu from Kagawa University in Japan participated actively in the 12-day
spring program. They place great importance on international exchanges with
NCYU, and will encourage more students from Japanese sister schools to join the
programs, thus deepening the friendly ties between Taiwan and Japan.
Photo 1: The students from the five
universities in Japan experienced clam digging in the coastal area of Budai.
Photo 2: They joined a bird-watching course
on the Lantan campus.
Photo 3: The students visited the
Poftongaveoveo Art Village and experienced mochi making.
Photo 4: The students visited the Food
Processing Pilot Plant, affiliated to the Department of Food Science, and tried
their hands on making pineapple cakes.
Photo 5: Chen Mao Jen, Dean of the College
of Humanities and Arts, introduced seal carving and guided the students in
making seal carving works.
Photo 6: The students visited the Southern
Branch of the National Palace Museum to admire the special exhibition of
cultural relics.
Photo 7: The students visited the
Poftongaveoveo Art Village, where they listened to traditional songs and dances
performed by the Tsou Tribe.
Photo 8: The spring school concluded with a
graduation ceremony on March 7th.