An indigenous friend of mine once told me: “There is wisdom everywhere in indigenous communities, and even children can be your teachers.” “Learning” from indigenous communities is quite different from anthropologists’ past approach of “studying” them. Indigenous communities are no longer merely passive objects of our analysis, but offer an equal viewpoint, making learning a dynamic two-way process of mutual participation and sharing. It is only after truly engaging with indigenous communities that one “discovers” these living classrooms, and through study and personal experience, much vibrant and fascinating indigenous knowledge becomes imprinted in our minds.
In October 2020, Taiwan Panorama, the Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation, and National Chengchi University’s Center for Southeast Asian Studies jointly held a symposium entitled “From Our Villages to the World—Rediscovering Aboriginal Images and Music” at the Taitung Art Museum. Experts, scholars and artists specializing in Austronesian culture were invited to attend. The two-day event featured exciting discourse on Austronesian culture, and indigenous musicians shared their experiences of interacting with people from the nations of Southeast Asia and Oceania.
Taiwan Panorama has long taken an interest in indigenous issues. As early as June 1983 we published “A Land of Mountains and Songs,” documenting the lives of indigenous people in Nantou’s Xinyi Township. Our December 1993 cover story, “Reawakening the Tribal Spirit,” reported on the lives of the Amis people living in Xizhi’s Shanguang Community. We have covered a wide variety of indigenous topics, including the origins of the different tribes, seasonal festivals and rituals, arts and culture, economics, and social movements. In this month’s cover story, we explore traditions and innovations in indigenous music, drama, crafts, and architecture, as well as the transmission of life wisdom, allowing the beauty of indigenous culture to draw people and ethnic groups closer together.
In this issue we also take you on a cycling trip around the Hengchun Peninsula, visiting attractions such as Hengchun, Kenting, Eluanbi, and the Alangyi Historic Trail. We look at how the little town of Daxi in Taoyuan, once a center of rosewood furniture making, is creatively injecting new vitality into its venerable downtown area. We also report on Taiwan’s growing interest in podcasts, and on the invaluable contributions to society made by this year’s Tang Prize laureates. And last but not least, we share some of the touching and remarkable stories that emerge from the National Immigration Agency’s “Dream-Building Program” for immigrants and their children. It’s all here in this month’s Taiwan Panorama.
