NPUST Taiwan Sustainability Hub (TSH@NPUST) held the “2023 Symposium on Low-Carbon Food Production and Ecosystem Services” at the university’s Big Data Center on May 19th. A number of related professionals were invited to participate in the discussions, including Rudolf de Groot, chair of the Ecosystem Services Partnership, Professor Yumin Wang of the NPUST International Service Center for Irrigation R&D, Director Wen-Hao Leu of the Kaohsiung Irrigation Association, Director Yi-Sheng Yang of the ICLEI Kaohsiung Capacity Center, and Director Namue Lee of the Asian Office of the International Alliance for Ecosystem Services.
In her remarks, the head of TSH@NPUST, Associate Prof. Herlin Chien, said “this symposium will be used to discuss the importance of environmental sustainability, low-carbon food production, and ecosystems. Speakers will share professional insights on environmental sustainability and low-carbon food production, and discuss extreme climate rainfalls. Discussions will also be conducted on issues of inequality, agricultural drought-resistance strategies, and the sustainable relationship between cities and food systems.”
In the future, TSH@NPUST will cooperate with the Asian Office of the International Alliance of Ecosystem Services to promote ecosystem services in Taiwan and Asia, emphasizing the value of including ecological service requirements in cost calculations for various agricultural products, while also promoting the “true price” of food.
The morning session of the event included briefings on such topics as “Ecosystem Service Concepts”, “Climate Adaptive Food Production-SPRI Probiotic Rice Farming Methods”, “Water Resources and Food Production” and the “City Food Program”. The attendees also had a chance to participate in a blind taste test of low-carbon rice bread developed by the NPUST Sustainability Hub and Department of Hotel and Restaurant Management. In the afternoon session, Professor Shu-Yi Liaw from the Department of Business Administration led the symposium participants on a “low-carbon field trip”. The Wannian River Conservation Association and a number of local volunteers who promote sustainable environmental education in Pingtung joined in for the excursion which took them to Princess Green Nursery Social Enterprise and Dongpian Community “Gem Village Eco-Museum”.
In recent years, Princess Green Nursery Social Enterprise has been activity promoting a sustainable agricultural production model which makes use of green electricity and solar energy. It is one of the few agricultural enterprises in Taiwan whose main focus is seedling production. It currently has a variety of seedling technologies which it uses for vanilla pods, strawberries, and a variety of ornamental plants. The Dongpian Community Gem Village is the first rural social enterprise in Taiwan, and is committed to promoting sustainable agriculture. The group has long-term links with NPUST, and together they are working to promote industry-university cooperation and food and agriculture education.
The symposium aimed to provide participants with an understanding of the practical significance of environmental sustainability, low-carbon food production, and ecosystems. As the TSH@NPUST continues to provide support for sustainable development and agricultural transformation, they hope to see more people respond to the new low-carbon way of life.
