Reacting to the rise in frequency of natural disasters affecting East Asian countries, local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have proposed setting up a coordination platform for disaster relief in Taiwan, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs official said yesterday.
The Taiwan Alliance in International Development (Taiwan AID), an alliance of dozens of local NGOs, is to table the proposal at the upcoming Asia NGOs International Development Conference to be held on Sept. 14 in Taipei, the ministry’s NGO Affairs Committee Deputy Chairman Wu Rong-chuan (吳榮泉) said.
Wu said the proposal had been well-received by various NGOs in other Asian countries since it was first broached in 2008, but the origin of funds needed for its operation remains to be resolved.
Despite a difficult funding environment, Taiwan AID has not relinquished the plan, as it wishes to make a difference with its skills and experience to contribute to Asian security facing the threats caused by global warming, Wu said.
Separately, at a routine press conference, Wu said that Cijin beach in Cijin District (旗津), Greater Kaohsiung, has been selected by Pacific Rim Parks (PRP), an NGO in the US, as a site to join a project aiming to foster understanding and goodwill in the marine environments of the region through the creation of ocean parks.
James Hubbell, a co-founder of the San Diego-based organization, and its president Kyle Bergman are in Taiwan discussing the plan with the Greater Kaohsiung Government and performing an onsite review and inspection of the site, Wu said.
If the design of the park is finalized by the end of this year, the park in Cijin is expected to be completed within six months, Wu said.
“It could enhance exchanges and cooperation in marine culture and ecosystem conservation between Taiwan and other countries under the project,” Wu said.
In related news, the Garden of Hope Foundation and Good Shepherd Social Welfare Service are to co-host an international conference of women’s shelters from Sept. 3 through Sept. 5 to bring together 22 leaders in women’s affairs organizations from 13 countries in Asia, Wu said.
The event forms part of efforts of local women organizations to become the focal point of the Global Network of Women’s Shelters.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
The first bluefin tuna of the season, brought to shore in Pingtung County and weighing 190kg, was yesterday auctioned for NT$10,600 (US$333.5) per kilogram, setting a record high for the local market. The auction was held at the fish market in Donggang Fishing Harbor, where the Siaoliouciou Island-registered fishing vessel Fu Yu Ching No. 2 delivered the “Pingtung First Tuna” it had caught for bidding. Bidding was intense, and the tuna was ultimately jointly purchased by a local restaurant and a local company for NT$10,600 per kilogram — NT$300 ,more than last year — for a total of NT$2.014 million. The 67-year-old skipper
BREACH OF CONTRACT: The bus operators would seek compensation and have demanded that the manufacturer replace the chips with ones that meet regulations Two bus operators found to be using buses with China-made chips are to demand that the original manufacturers replace the systems and provide compensation for breach of contract, the Veterans Affairs Council said yesterday. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Michelle Lin (林楚茵) yesterday said that Da Nan Bus Co and Shin-Shin Bus Co Ltd have fielded a total of 82 buses that are using Chinese chips. The bus models were made by Tron-E, while the systems provider was CYE Electronics, Lin said. Lin alleged that the buses were using chips manufactured by Huawei subsidiary HiSilicon Co, which presents a national security risk if the
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