The General Education Center of University of Taipei held a lecture on Taipei ecomuseums on November 5, 2021. The Deputy Mayor Tsai, Bing-kun was invited to share the story about Taipei City and the project of Taipei ecomuseums. At the beginning of the lecture, Deputy Mayor Tsai mentioned the historical and cultural development of Taipei. He said, “Taipei is a city with diverse cultural heritage.” From the early settlements of immigrants to the reclamation by the people from Fujian and Quanzhou in the Qing Dynasty, Taipei is a popular place where many people wanted to settle down. The speaker also told the students about the history of Taipei City during the Japanese colonial period. He shared a brief introduction of the development of Taipei and the process of being an international metropolis nowadays. The history of Taipei city has been told one by one throughout history. If we want to explore the details of these stories, most people may visit some specific museums. However, we have a new choice now. Taipei ecomuseums, which is a project planned by the Taipei City Government, break this traditional framework. Without displaying the collections in one specific museum, Taipei ecomuseums is a museum focused on the identity of Taipei City, based on local participation and aiming to enhance the welfare and development of local communities. Through the cooperation and integration of the government and the private institutions, the campaign “Taipei ecomuseums” were launched and they use "Let the city tell you its story.” as their slogan. Through visiting Taipei City, people can also visit the ecomuseums at the same time. When it comes to the main area of the Taipei ecomuseums, it can be divided into three parts which we call “5+3+2.” The first part has five major city zones of historical importance. They are: Bangka, Dadaocheng, Beitou, South Town, and North Town. The second main area includes Shilin, Nangan, and the Songshan Cultural and Creative Park. Last but not least, the "2" refers to Maokong and the whole Taipei City. In the lecture, Deputy Mayor Tsai introduced each area one by one to the students. From geography to cultural development, he gave lots of details of this campaign. In addition, the speaker used lots of videos to make students know more about the areas he mentioned. If you have the opportunity to visit Bangka, the temples and the monuments will be the best choice for sightseeing. What’s more, the local cuisine is really delicious. If you have free time, you can stroll on the street and go to the shopping districts to have some fun. Through the cooperation and integration of the government and the private institutions, there are a great number of events in every season. If you want to visit the historic street in Taipei, Dadaocheng, which has a lot of traditional architecture from hundreds of years, will be a good place to visit. Not only as the birthplace of modern thoughts, Dadaocheng also features the local religious ceremonies. While walking on the street here, you may see the wonderful integration of old and new buildings. As for the hot spring town with stories, Beitou is a place that you cannot miss. In addition to having a rich hot spring culture, Beitou also features the results of community construction. If you want to have a warm journey in the cold winter, you can definitely choose Beitou as your destination. Then, Deputy Mayor Tsai mentioned that you might see the light of enlightenment in South Town. In the past, South Town was a place where immigrants settled down. Now, it has many museums and independent bookstores there. The last area is the North Town. It is a place that has a diverse culture. When you visit here, you may see many contemporary artworks and a lot of unique shops on the streets. At the end of the speech, Deputy Mayor Tsai encouraged students to go out and explore the environment we live in. While having a trip, don’t forget to pay attention to the cultural development of local communities. Stories take place all around us. Try walking about one major ecomuseums in Taipei. Let the city tell you its story.

Implemented by General Education Center
Date: 2021/11/15