The Ministry of Education is to hold two Webinars next month to explore how young people from around the world can collaborate on disease prevention during the COVID-19 crisis.
The Webinars are to feature Minister Without Portfolio Audrey Tang (唐鳳) and 18-year-old Web developer Avi Schiffmann.
Tang and Anny Chang (張希慈), founder of the International City Wanderer Education Association, are to be the moderators for two online discussions, as part of the Global Youth Trends Webinar, which is organized by the Youth Development Administration, the ministry said in a statement yesterday.
.Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
“The topic that we’re going to discuss this year is living together in a time of pandemic and digital technology,” Tang said in a video promoting the event. “We look forward to integrating the imagination of the youth.”
The pandemic has made global partnerships “more important than ever,” organizers said on the event’s Web site, adding that they hope participants would “think about what we can do together for the world as youth.”
The first of the two sessions is to take place from 1pm to 2pm on Nov. 13, while the second is to be held from 4pm to 5pm on Nov. 27.
Registration is required for the Webinars, which are to be livestreamed, organizers said, adding that attendees would be welcome to ask questions during the discussions.
Schiffmann is to be a speaker in the first session, the ministry said.
A high-school student from the US, Schiffmann created the nCoV2019.live Web site that compiles data from the disease control departments of various countries and provides the public with first-hand information, the ministry said.
For his contributions, Schiffmann was named this year’s Webby Person of the Year and selected as one of Wired magazine’s Wired25 honorees, the ministry said.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) and Tang were also included as a trio on this year’s Wired25 list.
The Webinars aim to help young people gain a more comprehensive understanding of the pandemic, the ministry said.
Young people would learn about different countries’ responses to the pandemic, as well as how to turn ideas into action, the ministry said, inviting youth from around the world to participate.
Registration details can be found at 2020gytf.kahap.com/online, it added.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost