The separation of residence from other living aspects -- such as occupation, leisure and education -- arises from the fact that the resources of a great number of public and private agencies are concentrated in urban areas in Taipei. Therefore, people are increasingly forced into moving towards the urban center. Given the limited land and environmental capacity, this only boosts the market, and generates other problems such as a rise in transport costs, a drop in the quality of living and the neglect of housing safety standards. All of these problems lead to the situation that people are unable to treat their residence as the core of the lifestyle they construct. This leads people away from community living, making life in the city impossible.
The uneven distribution of resources and limited use of national land creates rich cities and poor villages, and high housing prices and poor living conditions have become a heavy burden for urban residents to bear. Village residents too are struggling anxiously in an environment which is low in housing prices, yet also short of vitality.
If housing conditions continue to be regarded as a simple economic problem -- in which citizens' rights, regional development and land use are not being investigated from an holistic ecological viewpoint -- then ideal lifestyles will still remain the most valued yet unattainable pursuit of the Taiwanese people.
Lee Yung-jaan is professor of land economics at the National Chengchi University (
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