National Pingtung University of Science and Technology (NPUST) and the Pingtung County Health Bureau jointly held a “Generational Integration –Youth and Seniors Learn Together” life therapy activity on March 21st (2025). NPUST President Chin-Lung Chang and Pingtung County Health Bureau Supervisor Li-hsueh Wang attended the opening of the event, which brought seniors from community to the campus to participate in learning activities with the college students. The event aims to promote cross-generational exchange and emphasize the value building connections based on youthful vitality and age-old wisdom.
NPUST’s President Chin-Lung Chang said that the event is “not only an opportunity for learning, but also a great way to narrow the distance between generations. Through cross-generational interaction, seniors can enjoy the warmth and vitality of the young students, and the students can gain from the wisdom and experience of the seniors. By providing school facilities and resources, establishing connections with the local community, making the university campus an extension of the community, and creating an environment that is friendly and respectful to the elderly, NPUST is fulfilling its university social responsibility”.
The Generational Integration series is organized by the Department of Wood Science and Design, Graduate Institute of Landscape Architecture and Recreation Management, Department of Animal Science, Department of Hotel and Restaurant Management and other academic units. It will include a variety of meaningful and lively activities that integrate features of agriculture, design, hospitality, and recreation. For the March 21st installment, the seniors participated in two morning classes, namely “Art Therapy and Spiritual Creation” and “Plant Therapy and Body Care”. These were jointly organized by the Department of Wood Science and the Institute of Landscape Architecture. For the first class, the college students assisted the seniors as they painted the Nanzhou Sugar Factory Train using oil paints and enjoyed the spiritual inspiration brought on by creating art. After this, they experienced plant therapy in the Healing Garden, mixing essential oils from plants and learning how to use the oils for massages and relaxing the body.
After the morning classes, the seniors went to the school’s Second Student Restaurant where a nutritionist provided nutritional education using mnemonics and props. The seniors then enjoyed a pleasant lunch together, bringing the activity to a perfect end. The next installment of the Generational Integration series will take place on May 16th, with a health food activity organized by the Department of Animal Science and the Department of Hotel and Restaurant Management.
