Massive investment in solar and wind power will be needed if Taiwan is to phase out nuclear energy at the same time as meeting its carbon abatement commitments. This is part one of a three-part story on Taiwan’s energy situation: Part 2 Part 3 The “Energiewende” – energy transformation – of Germany’s power supply has…
Many consider Taiwan to be East Asia’s friendliest country for lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgenders. Many people know Taiwan for its rapid economic growth. As one of the Four Asian Dragons, Taiwan – along with Singapore, South Korea, and Hong Kong – quickly industrialized from the 1960s to the 1990s. Much of Taiwan’s identity has…
An international tribunal’s recent ruling on the South China Sea leaves Taiwan in a sensitive position. In September last year, President Tsai Ing-wen, then the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate, told a diplomatic reception: “A future DPP administration will be committed to following…the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)…
In the latest of a series of articles in TOPICS this year reflecting Taipei’s selection as the 2016 World Design Capital, six leading practitioners reflect on the role of designers and the state of the profession in Taiwan. By Samantha Kong & Nina Sheridan Ray Chen – Interior Design Ray Chen has gained a reputation…
Gym membership is growing rapidly in Taiwan, but still lags behind other Asian markets. As health and fitness take on higher priorities for many in Taiwan, growing numbers of people are exercising regularly. High-end fitness centers and extreme endurance events are expanding throughout the island, and the market for expensive personal trainers is booming. Yet…
Schools may need to merge, join an alliance, or shift to a different line of business. For the past three decades, government policy and a cultural stress on the importance of education have driven a boom in the number of universities in Taiwan, even as fertility rates have decreased. Despite warnings for years that a…
Steeped in the contract-manufacturing ethos, companies still often fall short in their bid to become global brands. Just half a decade ago, HTC was riding high as a proud example of a Taiwan company that had succeeded in establishing its brand among the world’s top makers of handsets. But the Taoyuan-based manufacturer has lost 90%…
Taiwan’s rising emphasis on high-quality lifestyle has spurred a wave of new homegrown brands offering everything from premium accommodations to inventive cuisine. Taiwan ranked as Asia’s third-happiest country behind Singapore and Thailand in a report released in March by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network and Columbia University’s Earth Institute. Overall, Taiwan came in 35th in…
More than 70 years after the Japanese occupation of Taiwan ended, Japan’s legacy endures in the Taiwanese capital. At first blush, little remains of Japan’s colonial legacy in Taipei. The traditional Japanese wooden homes that lined the Taiwanese capital’s streets in the mid-20th century were long ago razed to make way for contemporary mid-…
Beneath Taiwan’s modern façade is a body of beliefs that stretch back for millennia. For an insight into how people really think, you need to know about folk religion. In Taiwan, temples seem to be everywhere, ancestral shrines take pride of place in many homes, and altars can be found in numerous offices and restaurants….
