Planting Trees under the Sun in Ulaanbaatar

In the summer of 2024, a team of 16 teachers and students from Feng Chia University embarked on a one-month exchange trip to Mongolia under the support of two projects led by Professor Chu Cheng-Yung of the Master's Program in Green Energy Technology and Professor Lin Ming-Shih of the Department of Risk Management and Insurance. The projects were titled "University Social Responsibility - Rural Carbon Reduction and Green Co-Energy Linkage for International Sustainable Co-Benefit Action" and "Sea of Learning and Dream Building - Urban Greening and Sustainable Development Internship". The team conducted activities such as tree planting, environmental education, business visits, and academic exchanges, conveying the concepts of sustainability and global issues through practical actions. 

During the project period, the student team worked together and planted nearly 1,100 seedlings in two weekends. They did everything from carrying seedlings, digging holes, planting, to watering. They even formed a human chain to pass the plants, ensuring that each step was completed efficiently through close collaboration. It is worth mentioning that the Tzu Chi Foundation shared the advanced technology of water pots, which allowed everyone to witness how Taiwan's green technology helped trees grow on Mongolian land. 

Feng Chia students planted trees under the scorching sun at 34 degrees, from carrying saplings, digging holes, forming human chains to pass the plants, planting to watering, they did it all themselves, working seamlessly together, and planted nearly 1,100 saplings. Every step was filled with sweat, laughter, and emotion.

The team of teachers and students from Feng Chia University joined forces with the Taiwan Tzu Chi Organic Agriculture Development Foundation to plant trees on the vast grasslands in the suburbs of Mongolia.

The Feng Chia team also introduced Taiwan's unique culture, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and Taiwan's concrete measures to achieve the SDG indicators to high school students at the Mongolia-Singapore International School. After class, they also shared authentic Taiwanese pearl milk tea with the local students, which they cooked on the spot. The process was full of laughter. 

On July 9, the team visited the Taipei Trade and Economic Representative Office in Ulaanbaatar and had breakfast with Ambassador Wang Kai-You. Ambassador Wang not only kindly shared the cultural differences between Mongolia and Taiwan, but also reminded the students of the safety precautions they need to take while living in Mongolia, and emphasized the importance of respecting local customs and habits. Afterwards, Professor Chu Cheng-Yung led two students to participate in an international forum co-organized by the National University of Mongolia and Hanyang University in Korea; and visited the president of the National University of Mongolia to discuss the future academic exchanges, mutual visits, and internships between the two universities under the platforms of the Ministry of Education's Sea of Learning and Dream Building and TEEP projects. 

This exchange project made all the participating students deeply aware of the huge impact of the lack of vegetation on the ecosystem and global warming. It also deepened the educational and cultural exchanges between Taiwan and Mongolia. It laid a solid foundation for the future cooperation between the two countries in environmental protection, sustainable development, and academic exchanges. We hope that the students will bring their experiences and achievements back to Taiwan and inject new energy into the University Social Responsibility Project of Feng Chia University. 

The Ambassador of the Taipei Economic and Trade Office in Ulaanbaatar, Wang Kai-You, welcomed the visit of teachers and students from Feng Chia University, and kindly shared the cultural differences between Mongolia and Taiwan.